Copper Lake guard charged with child abuse after allegedly throwing 17-year-old into wall
MADISON - A guard at a northern Wisconsin school for troubled girls has been charged abusing a child housed at the facility.
Evan D. White, 44, was charged with one count of physical abuse of a child, intentionally causing bodily harm, and substantial battery, both felonies. The incident occurred in mid-April at the Copper Lake School for Girls.
According to the complaint, the 17-year-old girl refused to go back to her room after outside recreation. When she did go back to her room, she obtained a rock and tried to break a window in her room.
White arrived at the unit and asked the girl to stop, but she refused to and began to cuss and get in the guard's face. She then spit in his face twice as he tried to restrain her. He put her in a bear hug, and another guard attempted to take her back to her room.
More: Teen faces homicide, felony murder charges in death of Lincoln Hills guard Corey Proulx
White also tried to get the girl back to her room, at which point White threw her against the wall and slammed her into the ground, the complaint says. The girl said her "head became dizzy" after hitting it on the wall, and that at one point her vision was "black."
After striking the wall, the girl had a "level 10 headache" and felt something dripping down her face. She had headaches for several days after the incident. The girl was taken to a local hospital where staff glued a cut on her eye shut and gave her Tylenol, according to the complaint.
According to medical records, the girl had a laceration to her face and had drainage coming from her right eye, as well as swelling.
The charge comes a week after a youth at Lincoln Hills School for Boys, on the same Irma campus as Copper Lake, was charged in the fatal beating of a guard. Javarius Hurd, 16, was charged in the death of 49-year-old Corey Proulx as well as injuries to a 25-year-old female guard. in an altercation. A second boy was also charged in relation to the fight for providing the cup of conditioner that Hurd threw into the face of the woman.
Both were charged last week with second degree reckless homicide in Proulx's death.
More: 2 staff assaulted by youth at Lincoln Hills; one remains in critical condition
The Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake have long been known to have serious problems for the youth incarcerated there and the staff responsible for them.
The facilities, north of Wausau, were created to house boys and girls who have committed serious crimes or are repeat offenders.
The state has suffered through years of lawsuits and abuse allegations that alleged excessive use of pepper spray, strip searches and restraints against detainees at the facilities. Teens have suffered injuries within the facility such as brain damage and toes in need of amputation.
More: GOP blocked funding that would have allowed transfer of youth tied to Lincoln Hills death
One of those incidents sparked a 2017 lawsuit that led to the appointment of a court-ordered monitor to oversee conditions at the youth prison complex. The state paid more than $25 million in court settlements and legal fees. The monitor is still overseeing the facilities, as the state has not yet met all of the outlined requirements.
White was given a $1,000 signature bond by a Lincoln County Judge on Tuesday. His next court date has not yet been set.
Laura Schulte can be reached at leschulte@jrn.com and on X at @SchulteLaura.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Copper Lake guard charged with child abuse after April incident
