by TChris

Boot camps for unruly juveniles have been popular with the "harsh treatment builds character" crowd, but the story of Anthony Haynes reveals the potential for abuse that inheres in the "tough love" philosophy.

Anthony Haynes was a troubled overweight youth, and his mother sought out Long's program because she said she was desperate to find ways to cope with the child. While sitting in a disciplinary line in the July heat, Haynes began acting erratically, eating dirt and possibly hallucinating.

A counselor and several youths took him to a hotel and placed him, unconscious, in a shower bath, where he inhaled water. Then, rather than call for medical help, they took him back to the camp, where he died despite attempts to resuscitate him.

Charles Long, who operated the Arizona camp, was convicted Monday of reckless manslaughter in the 14-year-old boy's death. He had been charged with the more serious offense of second degree murder.