The St. George, Utah-based business transports three to four teens each month to any of seven schools affiliated with the World Wide Assn. The slender young runaway from Anchorage, Alaska, was sent home after he was caught shoplifting food.
The next morning, an escort team showed up in his bedroom. When the men tried to carry him out, Logan grabbed a table, then elbowed one man in the face, he says. They dropped him, put him in handcuffs and led him away. Logan wound up in Western Samoa, where he spent 18 months before moving to Casa by the Sea in Ensenada a few months ago.
Saying he has turned his life around since being put in the program, the year-old says he now understands why he was treated so forcefully when he fought to avoid leaving his life of drugs. Del Aguila said escorts typically show up in the middle of the night because teens will be disoriented and less likely to struggle. Del Aguila said escorts try to calm teens by talking to them about their problems and what to expect at the programs where they will be sent.
By the time they reach the airport, the teens usually have relaxed enough that they rarely struggle, he said. The escort teams carry notarized permission from parents legally authorizing them to transport the minor.
Dion Aroner, a California state assemblywoman, proposed in February that the services be banned from using coercion and force on adolescents and that they be required to register with state officials. Karr Farnsworth, president of the World Wide Assn. The most important California stories and recommendations in your inbox every morning.
