Father of girl who died at Utah boarding school suing, claims facility ignored her pain for weeks
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The father of a teenage girl who died at a Utah boarding school has filed a lawsuit alleging the center ignored his daughter’s complaints about the “intense pain” that led to her death.
Taylor Goodridge, 17, died on December 20 after collapsing inside Diamond Ranch Academy in Hurricane, Utah, from what her family believes was sepsis from an untreated illness.
In late December, Taylor’s father, Dean Goodridge, filed a lawsuit against the facility, which has since been placed on probation by the Utah Department of Health and Human Services.
Dean alleges that staff members told the 17-year-old to ‘hold it’ and claimed she was faking her pain, telling her to take aspirin and drink water for abdominal pain which caused her to collapse at one point in her own vomit and distended his stomach.
Taylor Goodridge, 17, died inside Diamond Ranch Academy on December 20.
The facility is described as a “therapeutic boarding school” according to its website.
According to its website, Diamond Ranch Academy is a “therapeutic boarding school” that works with adolescents who have a variety of problems ranging from anger management issues to major depressive disorder.
The teen’s cause of death has yet to be officially determined and shared.
Taylor reportedly fell ill on December 20 and collapsed inside the facility. When EMS officials arrived, Taylor was pronounced dead.
The girl’s father through the lawsuit alleges that she had complained to staff members for weeks, since November, about severe abdominal pain.
In response, the father says, school and staff members claimed that she was faking the illness even though she had at one point collapsed before her death.
The lawsuit, filed by Alan Mortensen, who represents Dean, argues that the school violated Utah’s Health Care Negligence Act by failing to address or take seriously the girl’s complaints.
According to a lawsuit filed by her father, Taylor had spent weeks complaining of severe abdominal pain.
Taylor (far right) with his mother and siblings
The facility works with teens who have a variety of issues ranging from anger management issues to major depressive disorder, according to its website.
When Taylor entered the facility, he was in “very good health,” according to his father.
“Here’s this young teenager being sent to Utah from Washington state to try to help her get her life together,” Mortensen said.
And before you know it, she died of what we think will ultimately turn out to be sepsis. And without explanation’, the lawyer said.
In addition to Taylor’s complaints of grief, the teen also begged staff to help her in the weeks leading up to her death, her father’s lawsuit says.
Even after Taylor collapsed in her own vomit and had an abdomen “extremely distended for others to notice”, the staff continued to ignore her.
At one point, Taylor allegedly got so sick that she collapsed in her own vomit.
Taylor’s father claims that her abdomen had noticeably distended before her death.
Lawyers believe the teen died of sepsis and not a heart attack as the school claims.
Dean, through his lawyer, says he believes his daughter’s treatment may reflect similar experiences of other students who “are often ignored or told they are faking their illnesses.”
Mortensen also says school officials told the teen’s family that she had been taken to the hospital after a heart attack and later died from the incident. Her family believes that she died of sepsis from an untreated abdominal problem.
The lawsuit claims that the father felt comfortable sending his daughter to school after reading the guarantees promised by the school.
“We recognize how difficult it was to make the decision to intervene on behalf of your child,” says a Diamond Ranch Academy Parent Handbook, according to the lawsuit.
‘We also recognize how difficult it is to leave your child’s care in the hands of another. Rest assured knowing that we take our responsibility very seriously,” the manual continues.
The academy also promises parents that it will “treat each student as if they were our own daughter or son.”
It’s unclear exactly why Taylor is being treated.
Dean Goodridge with Taylor (bottom right) and two of Taylor’s brothers
The cause of death of the teenager (left) has not yet been determined.
In a Facebook post made on Christmas Eve, Dean shared the news of Taylor’s death with his friends and said the family plans to get to the bottom of the situation.
“This is the hardest thing I’ll ever write,” Dean wrote.
“We don’t know what happened, we’ll find out what happened,” the grieving father said.
Dean, who lives in Washington state, said the girl “meant the world to her family,” including her brothers who loved her very much.
Taylor’s father shared the news of his daughter’s death on Facebook the day before Christmas.
Amber Wigtion, Taylor’s mother, spoke to ABC 4 Utah and sobbed as she spoke about how Taylor’s death affected her and her family.
Wigtion appeared in front of a background reading ‘shut down Diamond Ranch Academy’ while speaking to the local news outlet.
‘Them [her siblings] They are also taking it a bit hard, especially my nine-year-old daughter, she really looked up to her older sister,” Wigtion said.
The mother said that Taylor had a profound influence on her siblings and that whatever she did, her siblings wanted to do too.
Everything Taylor did, her younger siblings wanted to do too, according to her mother.
Taylor’s mother, Amber Wigtion, spoke to ABC 4 Utah in front of a background that read ‘shut down Diamond Ranch Academy’
In a statement, Diamond Rancho Academy said:
“We are fully and transparently cooperating with the State of Utah as they investigate this tragedy.
‘Student safety is our number one priority and we continually strive to provide the best possible care for our students and families.
It is Diamond Ranch Academy’s policy not to comment publicly on pending litigation.’
This is the lawsuit filed by Dean Goodridge
Dean alleges the school ignored his daughter’s problems for weeks before her death
The installation, which shares glowing testimonials on its website, costs more than $7,000 a month according to a exit.
On Facebook, there is an entire Facebook group dedicated to those who attended Diamond Ranch Academy.
The clustercalled ‘I Survived Diamond Ranch Academy’ has more than 1,000 members and was created in 2011.
Diamond Ranch Academy opened its doors in 1999 and promises to watch over and care for patients “with all the concern of a loving parent.”
“If you are looking for a program for your teen that will really work, that will really make a difference in the long run, I encourage you to seriously consider Diamond Ranch Academy,” the academy’s website says.
“If it is important to you to find a program that will watch over, care for, and help your youth with all the concern of a loving parent, look no further,” the website continues.
Taylor’s family is seeking general and special damages, as well as punitive damages against the premises.
Taylor with her mother, Amber Wigtion, in an old photo
Taylor’s family is seeking a jury trial.
The lawsuit seeks general and special damages to be determined by the jury, as well as the cost of attorneys’ fees to be covered by the academy.
The family also requests that Diamond Ranch Academy pay punitive damages in “an amount sufficient to punish DRA and deter DRA and others in similar situations from engaging in such conduct in the future.”
No trial date has been set at this time.