WACO, Texas KXXV — The state has shut down a residential treatment center in northeast Texas, three months after one of its charges — an year-old boy — died in an incident that foster care officials and local law enforcement are investigating.
The boy died in a Greenville movie theater during an outing the day before Thanksgiving, according to three people who are familiar with the investigations. It is not known if the child died from an underlying illness related to stomach pain or from a wound that he had on his head before he entered the Greenville movie theater. The boy and his fellow housemates watched the movie and by the time it ended, the child was dead, one of the people familiar with the case said. The residential treatment facility, or RTC, where the boy was staying is one of dozens contracted with the state to house and treat the most traumatized and mentally ill foster care children.
Both agencies declined to publicly speak about their separate inquiries. The Tribune made several unsuccessful attempts to reach the facility. Public records suggest it is owned by Chaun Thompson , who spent seven years in the NFL playing first for the Cleveland Browns, then the Houston Texans until he was sidelined by an injury in He also could not be reached. Senators and Texas Health Commissioner Cecile Young and her chief financial officer, Trey Wood, were discussing a budget proposal that would add regulatory staff for inspections of long term care providers.
State Sen. Credit: Texas Senate Having trouble viewing? Watch this video on texastribune. Interviews and a search of public records and news accounts show the facility has had problems of varying severity over the last several years. Children have been injured and there have been multiple calls for service made to the facility, which consists of two large houses side-by-side along Farm to Market Road , southeast of Greenville in Hunt County. The state maintains a database that lists deficiencies at residential treatment centers over a 5-year period.
There were reports, 1 assessment, 10 self-reported incidents and 69 inspections. Coverage from the local newspaper, Herald Banner, also chronicled serious problems over the years. On March 22, , the news outlet reported deputies investigating an attack on staff by several of the boys living there. Residential treatment centers are inspected, licensed and monitored by the Texas Health and Human Services Commission.
