First off, I am the parent of a 15 year old, so you don't get to tell me to shut up. She is not perfect, but there is nothing she will ever do that would cause me to turn her over to someone else to do my job. Parents who do this do it for one reason: they can afford to. A nice vacation from mommy and daddy's little troublemaker. There are legitimate medical treatments for depression, drugs, behavior disorders, you name it. How many of these parents try these things, first. Almost none. Why, because that would require effort on their part. Marlene, you are right. I shouldn't judge. Parents who send their children off like this will be judged by someone who can be a lot harsher than me.

Don't be fooled! These are NOT bootcamps. These are TORTURE! camps America is sending its young people to. They rank right up there with abuses at Abu Ghraib and Guatanamo! For sure! Some of those soldiers who took part in abuses in Iraq and Afghanistan and Guatanamo Bay are probably former soldiers now bootcamp guards operating at these Torture Camps! America should be concerned with the abuses taking place right under its nose in its own countries rather than what Saddam Hussein or others allegedly committed against their people.

All bootcamps should be shut down in America. Most are nothing more than torture camps! They rank right up there with Abu Ghraib and Guatanamo. In fact, it would not surprise me if the bootcamp guards aren't former soldiers who may have been assigned to Abu Ghraib or even Guatanamo or some prison in Afghanistan while serving.

I'm appalled to hear people blame parents for trying to get kids help where the kid needs it most and the parent doesn't have the skill to help. It's not a matter of "teaching them to behave". These children are hindered by things parents cannot control....trauma, drugs/alcohol, peer intimidation and possibly, even mental illness. When a child gets sick enough for the hospital, would one condemn the parents for allowing the child to get sick in the first place? Of course not. It is sickening that a few bad camps "murdered" a child through a wilderness program. But I believe, through serious investigation of many such programs, before putting our out-of-control and at-risk child in a wilderness program, that most of the programs are sound, run by licensed and experienced officials and have a steadfast curriculum for turning the child's life around. Except in the case of mental illness, a child can be enlightened about his problems through these programs where they are taken out of their toxic environment at home, so the child can see what he/she is doing to himself and the people who love them. My child had drug, alcohol and anger issues brought about through events we knew nothing about and our son had no control over, at the time. Drugs, alcohol and anger are a potentially deadly mix. The Wilderness programs, when legitimately run by qualified persons and supervised, get the attention of the at-risk teen in a way you cannot do at home. It saved my son's life. The programs are hard physically and emotionally, but the success rate is very high. My heart goes out to the parents of the kids who died. A big mistake was made, yes, but they had no way of knowing the facility was bad. They only knew if they didn't get help in an area where they were not skilled, they would lose their children for sure. Those parents were doing the best they could, given the information they had. Those really were bad camps and will serve to taint the reputation of the good ones. TRAINED wilderness guides know when a kid is really faking and when they might be ill. The Aspen Group's camps are solid and reputable. My son eventually realized why he was drugging, drinking and where all of his rage came from. It was events in his life that happened outside the parents' domain. From losing a parent to cancer to being beaten by a gang once, made him forget with drugs and alcohol. It turned him angry at the world. We couldn't reach him to make it alright. The hardest decision on earth for a parent to make, is to leave your child in the complete care of people you don't know, but are convinced they are trustworthy and qualified. Parents aren't physicians, yet we don't even blink when the Doctor prescribes a medicine or treatment that may be as bad as the disease.

My point? Not all children respond to parents when they are in crisis. Lucky for you if your child does, for that is a blessing. So, don't blame the parents saying they are not teaching their kids when kids get in crisis. The parents who can find a way to pay the kind of money these Specialty Camps and Therapeutic Schools charge for their services, must love their kids more than anything. It's unfortunate that the camps aren't available for those who don't have the money or cannot qualify for a student loan.

It is horrendous what happened to the kids who were featured in this piece. Those schools need to be shut down and anyone directly involved from the field guides to the owners, should be prosecuted and punished. Yes, there does need to be rigid regulation, not just from the state where the schools are located. But there are many children who need this kind of wake up call to save their very lives. The child's crisis, in many cases, is not from the parent's bad rearing. Until you have a seriously at-risk child, and have tried every alternative you could to get them help, to no avail, you have no idea how life saving these camps and schools can be and how very, very difficult it is for a caring parent to relinquish their care to another for a short time. Again my heart goes out to the parents who lost their kids at those facilities. It was not their fault. It was the fault of the unqualified field guides and their superiors who didn't train them correcty. Their children now know where the parents' hearts were when they were left at the Wilderness camp for help. The parents had no way of knowing that the very camp they chose was "sick". Their children now know they were loved.

Rob, it's sad you believe only the wealthy send childen to these residential treatment programs. I don't pretend to know the percentages so won't resort to oft-used words like "most" or "all" when I don't know if they apply or not. What I DO know is that some parents with children in residential treatment programs have insurance that covers a portion (albeit small) of the expense and they "beg, borrow or steal" the rest. Moms that have been home to raise their kids, go back to work to pay for the treatment. Loans are acquired, second mortgages are taken out, grandparents are tapped for financial resources, houses are lost or deliberately sold, and payment plans with the "camp" are arranged. To say only the rich use these camps is a stereotype.

While I believe to some degree it IS a vacation for some parents when their child is in a residential treatment program, I'm not sure it can be said the "vacation" isn't well-deserved. We aren't discussing adolescent behaviors that are among the norm and to be expected when raising teenagers. Rather we're talking about constant verbally abusive and sometimes aggressive teens who have been so for a period of time without resolution. Teens who break doors, put holes in walls, shove mom out of the way, direct foul language at family members, repeatedly and without regard break simple household rules, commit truancy,cause disturbances at school and / or abuse drugd and alcohol. My own son's behavior issues have directed and disrupted our family since he was very young. His siblings suffered and sacrificed for many years from the lack of time and attention they receive because mom and dad are busy sorting through their brother's issues, attending a meeting at the school or trying to find another counselor to help. Marriages are broken. Friends are lost or never made. These of course, are crucial relationships for human beings in general but certainly for parents who need the support of their family and community while rearing a troubled teen. So, while the child is away, I expect the parents and siblings DO experience a bit of peace and tranquility in their lives - a "vacation" of sorts. But certainly it is at great emotional cost.

Are you kidding me! My son is bipolar and also has ODD. This will be the hardest decision of our lives. We love our son and are wanting to give him the coping skills to live a full and fruitful life. It is not inexpensive to send a child to one of these facilities. Some parents take second mortgages out on their homes. Unless you have a child who is suicidal or is feeling hopeless, you have no business judging any of us who are dealing with this situation on a daily basis.

You are complete idiots! I know the Lewis family and they are wonderful parents that did everything they could for their son Ryan. The parents of these kids have been through Hell and are trying to prevent this from happening to other families. You should be thanking them not blaming them.

We will be placing our 13 year old son in a residential care facility within a few weeks. This is the hardest decision I have ever made. I have cried for weeks. He is adopted with a familial history of mental illness and questionable drug and alcohol abuse. He has been in therapies of some sort since he was three years old. We have spent thousands of dollars (50K+), doing without many things, to get him help. He has been diagnosed as High Functionig Autistic, ADHD, poor impulse control with OCD and ODD. We have been extremely patient and care for this beautiful child very much. With the onset of puberty, he has however, become very distraight, angry and is suffering considerably. The other kids at school make fun of him. He never gets invited to birthday parties. He is ostracized constantly. At boy scout camp the other scouts knocked his tent over and made him cry numerous times. He is constantly called, queer, fag and other unkind names because he is "different". It is the parents of these so called "normal" kids who should be ashamed.

We have loving and carefully selected a facility that assists Autistic children in crisis. We are not sending him there for a vacation, but to give him a chance at a wonderful future life and to remove him from a cruel society that doesn't care one bit for him at the moment.

As for other parents of "perfect" children, I have little patience for your stares, your ugly comments under your breath and at times, your direct and unkind comments to him. He is doing the best he can with what he has and still deserves to go out and eat, shop, attend moves, etc. even though he is active, noisy, fussy, and wild. He deserves as good as life as we can give him. Back off and let parents do what they can and if they don't have the all the skills, let them get additional professional help without attacking their good intentions.

Paula, my heart is with you and your family. I, too, have lost my patience with parents of children who have developed "normally", yet feel compelled to judge the parenting abilities of those whose children are suffering from some form of emotional / psychological or neurological detriment. I've often said at parent / teacher conferences and other school related meetings (discipline meetings and IEPs), that if my son were visibly "disabled" his treatment by other students' parents and teachers / school administrators would be compassionate and loving. Instead, however, because his "disabilities" are emotional / neurological in nature (he, too, has been variously diagnosed with ADHD, aspergers, sensory integration disorder, etc.. over the years), and not physically evident, his treatment by others has exponentially increased his level of anger and depleted his self-esteem to zero or below. All of which complicates his difficulties and increased his lack of trust in authority, inclding his parents. We've not yet chosen to send our son to a residential treatment program, "boot camp" or wilderness encounter, and I suspect given the current information available regarding the safety of these approaches, we will not in the near future. However, I applaud your courage and fortitude to pursue what you believe is best for your own child, whom you clearly love very much.

I might mention here that NPR's Talk of the Nation yesterday afternoon, presented an interesting program regarding this topic. I believe it is available online if you, or anyone else would like the opportunity to listen to it.

How can some one blame the parents for trying to get help for their child. Don't you think they will live with enough guilt just by knowing they placed their child there and he died. Until a family has been touched with a misbehaved child, or by a family member involved in drugs or gangs they cannot begin to understand. I had a niece that got involved with meth. Our family comes from a long line of law enforcement officers. Trust me she was raised very well. But somehow that drug got a hold of her and she finally went to prison and that probably saved her life. I use to think that drug addicts were people you saw on a street corner or in the getto. But I learn the hard way that was not how it really was. I am not so jugemental now that my life has been touched by this awful drug. Things like this affect the whole family unit. So I think everyone should remember this quote "But for the grace of God go I"

Paula,
I, too, have children with Pervasive Developmental and severe mental health disorders... my two wonderful foster sons. All children deserve love and understanding, not only from their parents but from the general public. Unfortuately, too many blame parents without fully understanding a child's acting out in public settings. Those of us that take care of children with high needs understand that parents do not always have all of the answers and need mental health professionals, child psychiatrists, and specialized teachers to help stabilize our children. My boys are successful in their lives because they have spent time in a local residential treatment center. I am no expert when it comes to boot camps and NEVER condone mistreatment of ANY child but I thank God for the help my children have received from the certified and regulated treatment program they have attended.

There is a difference between a residential treatment center, staffed by medical professionals, and a boot camp or a behavior modification center. Please stop...all of you who attempt to put the two in the same category. Watch the video. Read the story. I quote Michael Harvey:

"She pleaded with us, 'Daddy, please don't make me go,'" her father Michael said in an interview with ABC News Monday. "All my instincts said, 'Leave this place now,' and I didn't trust my instincts."

This can be interpreted only one way. He had NO idea of where he was sending his child until the moment he arrived there to drop her off. These parents do not care enough to do their homework and make sure that they are putting their child in the care of competent professionals and I am supposed to feel sorry for them? That is absolutely preposterous!

I am so sick of hearing you people and your "you don't know until you walked in my shoes". STOP! Enough of your self pity. Stop lying to yourself and the world with this "it is the hardest decision..." garbage. Give the kid up if you don't want her or him anymore but spare me your "I am the victim" baloney. You baby boomers...your parents knew how to raise children and never needed outside help and you did not learn a dang thing from them. A generation that, literally, saved mankind and what do they get? The biggest generation of whining, greedy, faux-victimized, sanctimonious jerks in history. Everything that is wrong with America can be directly attributed to the likes of some of the pathetic crybabies who have posted comments here. I feel sorry for kids like Erica Harvey.

Despite constant militarist propaganda, a "boot camp" atmosphere can easily do nothing but harm to many troubled children, as well as adults. It is coercive conditioning (behavior modification, ie brainwashing), and for a person who already has problems with authority or any social problems at all, it may just drive them screaming over the edge.

I was a troubled child, my parent's never knew what to do but always fell back on corporal and emotional discline (which only made me more miserable and rebellious). At 19 after dropping out of college they recommended I join the Air Force. I was discharged within six weeks for medical reasons but the emotional scars of that experience (I have always been overly sensitive and emotionally troubled) have taken years to heal. My negative views on authority have, of course, never really changed. That is my personal story, and I am still recovering.

It is a travesty to send people with emotional issues into such an atmosphere, and this mindset that somehow a little emotional violence will "straighten them right out" no doubt directly contributes to many peoples' problems.

I was constantly teased in school for being different, it nearly drove me to suicide and forced me to join the adult world completely ill-equipped. I am 30 years old and still struggling. My heart goes out to the parents and children facing similar difficulties.

I personally feel a review of the entire system is in order. Thank you.

The "boot camp" option is scary (and yes, they're different than residential treatment programs), given the information in the media of late. But there are success stories out there, so should we disregard them? I seriously don't know. I DO know, that if I chose the "boot camp" option it would be after serious consideration and out of love for my son. Nothing else.

Maybe I'm wrong, but I'd truly like to believe that as a society we're civilized enough to want people to succeed no matter the strategy. So some children need intervention / or some parents need assistance. I don't care which way it's presented, as long as the help is sought and received. Admitting I've not been successful isn't a sign of weakness to me. I'm not HAPPY I haven't been successful with one of my children, but HIS success is more important to me than my ego. Maybe THAT's a generational thing?

Jack, I'm sorry your experiences were not only failed attempts to help, but actually detrimental to your emotional health. You, however, might be able to offer insight into this issue. What do YOU think might have helped? What should your parents have done?

I was thinking about Rob's comment earlier - regarding being tired of the "you don't know until you've walked in my shoes" / self-pity argument. I spent time assessing whether or not I AM feeling sorry for myself. Upon reflection, I felt compelled to post that I most certainly do NOT pity myself, or want others to pity me. Rather, I'm proud and honored to be my son's parent. Blessed, even.

i to am a parent of a rebelious child who started drinking and drugs at he age of 12 right under ny nose and as a trained medical proffesional I never saw any of the signs we are taught to look for,it seems that my child was born with an amazing capicity for chemicals,things that would kill and average 6ft,male had absolutely no physical effect,I don"t claim to have any mor knowledge or ability than any other parent out there but eternally grateful to the facility that the state of Florida sent my child to at the age of 14,to day she is a productive,loving woman and that would not have happened had she not gone to a 'boot camp' . Did I have vacation hell no I worried and prayed every second she was gone,no parent that cares wants anyone else to have any control over the child they bring into the world to think that is utterly ridiclous!! Not everyone on this planet is born with the same chemical or genitic makeup we all all different in all ways ,hence the reason one person dies from cancer and one lives,my heart goes out to any parent now or in the future who has to deal with a child who is different ,the road is difficult and there are not many people who understand what you are really dealing with every second of every hour of every day always!

why is this happening and why isn't anyone doing asnything about it come on now this is just ridiculous and if someone has to send their kids to boot camp because they can't handle them or because they are out of control then they should of never of had kids i would never send my kids to a boot camp unless i could see everything that was going on so that no abuse happened.

i have to agrre with john because if you love your child you should really think twice about what you are doing. Instead of boot camps where you know your child could and would possibly get beaten you could find other ways then to send them place that you hear about online because you may think what the people are trying to tell you is true but they always leave out the part that they could possibliy hurt your child badly of even kill them.if you really think they need help go talk to a counceller and try to agree on something other then abuse.

Yah juvenile boot camps can change your child’s life. If your child is at risk and he has behavioral problem such as teen violence, teen depression and teen cutting, boot camps will help you and your child. The cost of these types of camps is not so high.

Boot camps are good choice for troubled teens. These camps can change the life of troubled teens. Boot camp are effective only when if your child have behavior problem at starting level. Many sites are available which gives information about troubled teens.