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Murder
or Suicide? An Unresolved Question
On
January 28, 2005, Aaron Munoz, age twenty-one, who had given crucial testimony
in the conviction of an Oregon Youth Authority Case Worker, was found hanged in
a prison cell at the Oregon State Penitentiary. This death will be
investigated by the State of Oregon, due to the circumstances surrounding
Munoz’s “suicide”, and will remain open to speculation for some time to
come. (See: http://www.oregonlive.com/news
When I was Program Director for the Multnomah County Shelter/Evaluation facility serving adolescent males at Willow Lane in Troutdale, Oregon, one of our favorite case workers from what was then CSD (Children’s Services Division) was a fellow named Mike Boyles.
Linda Fisher, the Shelter Supervisor and I simply loved him--because he was an anomaly; at least that is what we thought at the time. All the other case workers were so stressed from case overload, impossible schedules, and a complete dearth of decent foster care that -- on a good day -- they managed to keep their appointments with us and kept their frustration-based irritability down to a low roar.
Mike was different: He not only kept his dates, but was invariably in a pleasant mood, ready with a smile and even gently humorous. He obviously cared about the boys on his caseload, for which he found foster care more quickly and expediently than all his colleagues combined--Easy to reach, easy to be with, easy on the boys under his care, easy to trust. Heck, he cared so much he sometimes even took one or another of them out to lunch; something unheard of but which provided a bit of extraordinary pleasure for the boys.
Linda
and I were always delighted and ready to send our clients off into the sunset
with Mike Boyles. There was one family in particular to whom Mike took
several of our clients. Two guys, “Jim” and “John” living in the
exurbs of
Portland, were invariably ready and willing to care for these kids in their
spacious, well-kept home, keeping them longer than most other “fosters.” Given the climate of verbal, physical and emotional abuse so often perpetrated against our kids by foster parents, “Jim” and “John” were a true blessing. They even did well with attendant paper-work, including regular CSD reports.
And then, years later, after I’d retired and Mike Boyles had switched from CSD to Oregon Youth Authority, the bomb dropped. Mike was arrested, tried and swiftly convicted -- possibly the most predatory child molester ever to have infiltrated the State of Oregon children’s protective services.
All those boys that Linda and I gave over to Mike so cheerfully, wound up severely sexually abused. “Jim” and “John,” our favorite foster parents, were, in fact, the purveyors of a sexual assault system in which the boys were plied with lots of alcohol and marijuana, then placed into what they called “the circle,” which began as a “masturbation circle” and then progressed to coercing them into committing horrific sexual acts upon one another, while “Jim,” “John” and Mike watched. This took place almost every evening, and Mike -- an almost nightly visitor -- often participated in the festivities. Yes, indeed: When that tough work day was over, Mike drove out to the exurbs and relaxed!
During Mike’s trial, a sixteen year old youngster named Aaron Munoz gave major testimony. He was credible, he was honest, and he spoke from experience. However, by age twenty one, Aaron was a criminal himself. Apparently, his psyche had not recovered from the childhood trauma of which the extensive sexual abuse at the hands of his case worker and foster parents was only one factor.
Aaron was eventually sent off to the Oregon State Penitentiary, where he was serving a twenty-four month sentence for assault. At the Penitentiary, he was placed into Cell Block D, reserved for troublesome inmates. Aaron Munoz served his sentence and was looking forward with great joy to his imminent, February 2, 2005, release.
But, this was not to be. On January 28, 2005, less than a week before his joyfully anticipated release date, Aaron Munoz was found hanged in his cell. So strange: Cell Block D, like Death row, has cells made for major visibility by guards. There are no bars on these cells. Instead, there is metal mesh with thousands of holes punched in which allow guards easy observation. The cells are also constructed so that all cell activity can be viewed from an elevated central station. There are only a few shaded feet of cell space behind structural columns that are not easily viewed.
Was this a suicide? Was Aaron a threat who may have had more names, more circumstances, and more fingers to point? And, where, exactly, is Mike Boyles currently incarcerated? Could it be in any way, even remotely possible that Mike, too, is doing his time at the Oregon State Penitentiary? We will never know.
As for Linda and me, the guilt which washes over, and into, and through us will never, ever, go away. We gave those kids -- the kids in our charge, our kids -- over to a monster, and did it with such joy. We hugged those departing boys, and assured them that -- at last -- the best part of their lives was now at hand. It turned out otherwise for them as it did for Aaron Munoz.
POAC editors note: This case, story, event, whatever label you choose to put on it is not a singular event and it sure is not limited to just here in Oregon. Look around in your state, go past the headlines and do a little searching and you will learn, as did I that: child predators are in over-abundant supply throughout this nation; Foster homes, churches, child services, schools, day care centers, and within children’s own families.
The violence perpetrated against children (and women) in this nation is truly astounding in its scope and pervasiveness, which is on the increase. When will there be an “Amber Alert” for those in the care of so-called adults, who are being systematically abused, tortured, assaulted and raped? Where are the so-called “family values” the Bush administration is always pontificating about? Or is funding for real child protective service, with ‘teeth’, going to be one of the 150 programs Bush has stated will be cut, with the label, “unnecessary?”
Doris Colmes resides in Portland, Oregon, has a Masters in Social Work is an anti-war activist and author. Her book “The Iron Butterfly: A Trip Thru the 20th Century” is an excellent read and may be found here http://www.doriscolmes.com She is an independent writer whose articles have been widely published on the internet and in print. She may be contacted at dhcolmes@msn.com |
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