A young person died by suicide earlier this summer at a Utah teen treatment center, and now state licensors are increasing their scrutiny of Heritage Schools’ Homestead campus and could shut it down.
State licensers determined the Payson program did not ensure that a young person “was free from potential harm” on June 21, and the youth injured themselves in a horse pasture.
Heritage Schools staff reported to licensers that on that day, the youth had requested to use their “check out privilege” — a 20-minute period of time where they were allowed to leave the group.
But after they did not return, according to the report, a staff member went to look for them and found them injured in a horse shelter on the campus’ pasture. Details about the young person’s injuries were redacted from records released to The Salt Lake Tribune. The youth died the following day.
No identifying details have been released about the young person. Utah County Sheriff Sgt. Spencer Cannon told The Tribune that evidence indicates that the youth died by suicide, but law enforcement officials are waiting for the medical examiner’s report before closing the case. He said they don’t believe any crimes were committed.
When reached by email, Heritage Schools CEO Keven Downs wrote: “Out of respect for this dear family, we have no comment.”
The Department of Health and Human Services have required that Heritage Schools’ Homestead program pay more than $10,000 in fines and cover the cost for increased visits from regulators while its license is considered in “conditional” status until September.
The program also was required to re-train staff about properly supervising the young people in its care, and it has not been permitted to accept new clients since the death. An inspection report from earlier this month indicated that there are five teens currently in the program, which advertises that it specializes in helping “neurodiverse high school aged girls.”
It’s possible that state officials could revoke the program’s license and shut it down if staff don’t follow through with these mandates, or if issues continue to arise. In recent years, officials have denied licenses to two programs after a client’s death. Licensers found in both cases that the girls did not receive needed medical treatment.
Heritage Schools operates four campuses in Utah County, according to licensing records. Each campus holds its own license, so the sanctions and restrictions for the Homestead campus don’t extend to the other three programs.