Death of boy, 12, at controversial North Carolina wilderness camp ruled homicide
The death of a 12-year-old boy at a controversial North Carolina wilderness camp for troubled youths has been ruled a homicide, according to an autopsy report.
The preteen — who has only been identified as “CJH” in documents — died in February from “asphyxia due to smothering” after he was locked inside a damaged bivy sack, which is a small enclosed tent, during his first night at Trails Carolina Camp, the state’s chief medical examiner ruled Monday.
It is standard procedure for Trails Carolina campers to spend their first night in the small tent, but staff deviated from its policy when they noticed the internal mesh door of the dead camper’s bivy was torn.
Instead, they used a weather-resistant door to secure the opening, which they equipped with an alarm that would blare if he tried to escape.
“He was placed into this compromised sleeping area by other(s) and did not have the ability to reasonably remove himself from the situation with the alarm securing the opening,” medical examiners wrote, noting that bivy products often warn against fully securing the weather-resistant opening because it may lead to “breathing restriction.”
“The standard protocol was deviated from due to using a damaged bivy and securing the outer weather resistant door instead of the inner mesh panel.”
No charges were announced following the report, though the Transylvania County Sheriff’s Office has been conducting a criminal investigation since the February death.
Trails Carolina has repeatedly claimed the death was accidental.
But police have asserted that the camp hasn’t completely cooperated with the investigation and purposely moved its campers to a different location to avoid interaction with investigators.
The camp was shut down in May after the Department of Health and Human Services determined the facility “endanger[ed] the health, safety, and welfare of clients.”
CJH, the 12-year-old boy, had a history of anxiety, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and migraines, according to the autopsy report.
He arrived at the self-described nature-based therapy program from New York less than 24 hours before he died, with counselors telling investigators he was “loud and irate,” refused to eat dinner and had a panic attack around midnight.
Counselors checked on CJH at 3 a.m. and 6 a.m., but couldn’t actually see the boy because of the “outer, opaque layer” of the bivy being closed, the autopsy report stated.
When the boy was found “cold to the touch and stiff” at 7:45 a.m., his body was turned 180 degrees from the entrance and his feet were near the opening, “which would have allowed the waterproof material to fall onto his head and face,” the report stated.
Trails Carolina did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment.
With Post wires
