The Associated Press
June 26, 2008
ALLENTOWN, Pa.-Two girls living in a group home were on their way to a Narcotics Anonymous meeting when they overdosed on more than two dozen methadone pills stolen from a counselor, leading to one girl's death, a state investigation found.
KidsPeace, the facility's operator, has been cited for not properly supervising the girls and allowing narcotics to be in their reach, according to a summary report obtained Wednesday by The Morning Call of Allentown.
Katherine Rice, 16, died as a result of the overdose; the other girl spent two days in a coma and faces what a relative says will be a lifetime of care.
The girls lived in Saylorsburg at a KidsPeace facility for troubled youths who have a history of substance abuse.
According to the Department of Public Welfare report, a counselor who had been prescribed the methadone for chronic back pain used her own car to take four girls to dental appointments on April 15. On the way, two girls stole the pills from an unspecified place in the car.
A day later, the girls took 28 methadone pills while being driven in a KidsPeace van to a Narcotics Anonymous meeting, the report said. At least one girl called a relative later that night and said she had ingested some of the pills.
On April 17, counselors couldn't wake the girls and both were rushed to a hospital.
KidsPeace was also cited for allowing a counselor to transport the girls in her car and for not supervising the girl's phone call, the report said.
State officials closed admissions to the home while it looked into the case, but now say KidsPeace has corrected the problems and can accept youths into its program.
"Obviously, there were problems surrounding this incident, but we've accepted their plan to correct them," said Department of Public Welfare spokeswoman Anne Bale.
KidsPeace closed the Saylorsburg facility last week but hopes to reopen the program in September at its main campus in North Whitehall Township, said program spokesman Mark Stubis.
"We are going to work hard to strengthen our policies to ensure the safety of all of the youths we serve," Stubis said. "This was a tragedy for all of us. The pain will linger for a long, long time."
