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Lewiston Daily Sun, Saturday, August 2, 1975 Lewiston Evening Journal, Thursday, August 7, 1975 Investigation Shows No Evidence of Abuse at Elan One Center By MAUREEN CONNOLLY Associated Press Writer AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - A preliminary investigation of the Elan One treatment center found no evidence of abuse and mistreatment of youngsters, state officials reported today. The investigation into the Poland Spring center for troubled youngsters was launched last week after the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services withdrew 11 Illinois state wards from the facility, charging they had been mistreated. State officials said the report was the unanimous opinion of the investigative team. "The Maine investigation revealed no evidence of unjustifiable denials of civil liberties or of mistreatment, brutality or anything that could be considered abhorrent to all acceptable standards of child care," the Maine Department of Health and Welfare said in a statement. "The investigation revealed that the Elan program was one of significant value that was achieving positive results in dealing with adolescents who had failed to respond to more traditional treatment or correctional methods," according to the statement. Investigators said they felt "the staff appeared dedicated, competent, and caring and the residents of Elan appeared healthy, responsive, content and supportive of the program, staff and other residents of Elan." The report continued "The residents interviewed usually expressed newly found feelings of dignity, self-assurance and mental well-being, and they attributed these feelings to the treatment they were receiving at Elan." Gov. James B. Longley ordered Health and Welfare Commissioner David E. Smith to evaluate Elan after Mary Lee Leahy, head of the Illinois agency made the abuse charges. She said the children were subjected to degrading treatment and violent punishment. The staff of Elan, a privately owned facility, denied the abuse charges and said they were the result of political infighting among Illinois officials. Several young people at Elan also told reporters in private that the charges were false. The Department of Health and Welfare said it will send a final report to Illinois, incorporating the findings of other investigators from Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island. In addition, Smith said an Illinois evaluation team has been invited back to Maine to meet with other investigators. The Maine investigation was conducted through Health and Welfare's Office of Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Prevention. Team members included a psychiatrist, a psychologist, and attorneys. The Lewiston Daily Sun, Friday, August 8, 1975 State Probe Gives Elan a Clean Bill of Health AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - A preliminary report by state officials Thursday cleared the Elan One youth treatment center of charges of child abuse. The Department of Health and Welfare released the results of a week-long investigation into the Poland Spring center for troubled youngsters. The state action was taken after the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services withdrew 11 Illinois state wards from the facility, charging they had been mistreated. Maine officials said the report was the unanimous opinion of the investigative team. "The Maine investigation revealed no evidence of unjustifiable denials of civil liberties or of mistreatment, brutality or anything that could be considered abhorrent to all acceptable standards of child care," the report said. "The investigation revealed that the Elan program was one of significant value that was achieving positive results in dealing with adolescents who had failed to respond to more traditional treatment or correctional methods," according to the report. Investigators said they felt "the staff appeared dedicated, competent, and caring, and the residents of Elan appeared healthy, responsive, content and supportive of the program and other residents of Elan." Gov. James B. Longley ordered Health and Welfare Commissioner David E. Smith to evaluate Elan after Mary Lee Leahy, head of the Illinois agency made the abuse charges. The director said the children were subjected to degrading treatment and violent punishment. The staff of Elan, a privately owned facility, and its residents denied the abuse charges. Staff members said the allegations were the result of political infighting among Illinois officials. The Department of Health and Welfare said it will send a final report to Illinois, incorporating the findings of other investigators from Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island. In addition, Smith said an Illinois evaluation team has been invited back to Maine to meet with other investigators. Portland Press Herald, Friday, August 8, 1975 Elan Center Cleared in Preliminary Report AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - A preliminary report by state officials Thursday cleared the Elan One youth treatment center of charges of child abuse. The Department of Health and Welfare released the results of a week-long investigation into the Poland Spring center for troubled youngsters. The state action was taken after the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services withdrew 11 Illinois state wards from the facility, charging they had been mistreated. Maine officials said the report was the unanimous opinion of the investigative team. "The Maine investigation revealed no evidence of unjustifiable denials of civil liberties or of mistreatment, brutality or anything that could be considered abhorrent to all acceptable standards of child care," the report said. "The investigation revealed that the Elan program was one of significant value that was achieving positive results in dealing with adolescents who had failed to respond to more traditional treatment or correctional methods," according to the report. Investigators said they felt "the staff appeared dedicated, competent, and caring, and the residents of Elan appeared healthy, responsive, content and supportive of the program and other residents of Elan." The report continued "The residents interviewed usually expressed newly found feelings of dignity, self-assurance and mental well-being, and they attributed these feelings to the treatment they were receiving at Elan." Gov. James B. Longley ordered Health and Welfare Commissioner David E. Smith to evaluate Elan after Mary Lee Leahy, head of the Illinois agency made the abuse charges. She said the children were subjected to degrading treatment and violent punishment. The staff of Elan, a privately owned facility, and its residents denied the abuse charges. Staff members said the allegations were the result of political infighting among Illinois officials. The Department of Health and Welfare said it will send a final report to Illinois, incorporating the findings of other investigators from Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island. In addition, Smith said an Illinois evaluation team has been invited back to Maine to meet with other investigators. Portland Press Herald, Monday, August 11, 1975 Elan is Cleared The Department of Health and Welfare, in a preliminary report, has cleared Elan One of charge of child abuse. We're delighted at that finding and are confident if a more detailed report follows it will be in the same vein. From the information that had been made public, it would have been difficult to understand any other conclusion. But it is good to have a clean bill of health made official. The investigation came after the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services withdrew 11 of its wards from the Poland Spring facility charging mistreatment. But officials of two other states immediately conducted their own investigations and found no reason to withdraw any of their wards, nothing that they could classify as mistreatment. It was significant, too, that two of the young people returned to Illinois promptly ran away and came back to Elan One at Poland Spring. No one runs away to get back to people who abuse them. They obviously wanted what Elan One was offering. What seems to be in much greater need of thorough investigation than Elan One is the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services. If the Illinois governor and other appropriate officials are as diligent in probing their own department as Maine officials have been in checking the Illinois complaint against Elan One, they might find something truly scandalous. The real tragedy here is those nine young Illinois people who are being denied the help that their troubled contemporaries at Elan One are receiving - and that other Illinois young people might receive in the future. Portland Press Herald, Wednesday, October 22, 1975 Connecticut Investigators Okay Elan POLAND SPRING, Maine (AP) - Connecticut investigators say they will continue sending youths with severe problems to a controversial care facility where therapy includes having the kids scream at each other. "The kids we send to Elan are those we would have had to send to an adult correctional facility or a maximum security mental hospital," says Anthony Lovallo, director of treatment for the Connecticut Department of Children and Youth Services. His boss, Commissioner Francis Maloney, says the program has helped most of the Connecticut youths sent there but adds there has not been a complete follow-up study. The program is conducted by the Elan Corp., which runs five therapeutic communities in the Lewiston area. Connecticut has put troubled youths in Elan's care since 1973. "We don't screen any of these kids before they come here. We don't care what their problems are or what crimes they have committed. After all, there has to be some place to treat kids like this," says Joseph Ricci, a former drug addict and Elan's therapeutic director. To those unaccustomed to the program, screams coming from Elan's converted farm house often are terrifying. The visitor soon discovers it's part of the program. "Primal scream is simply a way to give these kids an exit for their pain," Ricci says. "You can't hold anything back while screaming. The mind can't do two things at once." The therapy also involves intense encounter group sessions and peer group pressures. About 30 Connecticut youths, most of them with lengthy juvenile court records and most between 13 and 16 years old, are in Elan programs. Connecticut pays between $670 and $800 monthly per youth, which officials say is cheaper than at other private facilities. Regardless of cost, says Lovallo, Elan takes children unacceptable to other private facilities. The Elan program recently gained attention when Illinois withdrew its children. State investigators said children were forced into boxing rings to settle disputes and some were handcuffed and placed in straitjackets. |