OT?School district cited in suit over suicide

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http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/247022.html

School district cited in suit over suicide

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Published: January 6th, 2008 01:00 AM

The mother of a 16-year-old honor roll student who killed herself has

sued the Bethel School District, alleging classmates bullied her

daughter and that school staff members should have prevented it.

The mother, Sherry McAvan, also claims the district negligently

referred the teen to a Pacific Lutheran University clinic, which the

lawsuit contends was unqualified to treat the girl for anxiety and

other conditions.

The Bethel School District denies the allegations, said attorney Bill

Coats, who represents the district.

" We recognize this is a terrible tragedy, and we're not trying to make

light of it, " Coats said. " We're looking into investigating it as

thoroughly as we can. "

The lawsuit, brought in late November, follows the mother's filing of

a separate lawsuit in 2006 against Pacific Lutheran University's

Wellness Center and Wellness Clinic, and Forest Pharmaceuticals and

Forest Laboratories Inc., which manufacturers the antidepressant Lexapro.

On Friday, the parties agreed in Pierce County Superior Court to

consolidate the two complaints into one case.

The lawsuits seek unspecified monetary damages. However, McAvan's

August 2007 legal claim – required before a lawsuit can be filed

against a school district – sought $20 million from Bethel.

April Marie Baysinger was a junior at Bethel High School when she died

Nov. 1, 2004, according to the lawsuits. She held a 3.97 grade-point

average, the legal actions say. She lived her entire life in Graham

and Spanaway, and worked at a Mc's on Mountain Highway,

according to her obituary in The News Tribune.

" This was a wonderful young girl, " said Ann Deutscher, McAvan's

lawyer. " I have talked to so many people who knew her. She won

multiple service awards, she was very well-liked by teachers, she

excelled in math and science. "

On Oct. 20, 2004, McAvan took April to the PLU Wellness Center for

treatment of anxiety, depression, insomnia and fatigue. That day a

Wellness Center nurse practitioner learned of the girl's two recent

suicide attempts described as " one attempted choking and one with a

knife to her chest. "

The nurse practitioner placed the girl on Lexapro. At her next

appointment at the clinic on Oct. 28, the clinic doubled the girl's

dose of the antidepressant after learning the teen wasn't eating and

continued to suffer from anxiety and depression.

The girl shot herself four days later at her home in Spanaway.

The legal actions claim that Bethel High students physically and

emotionally harassed April in fall 2004 and that school staff either

knew or should have known about the alleged harassment, but did not

take steps to stop it.

Deutscher said she's trying to find out more specifics about the

alleged harassment, which was revealed by a co-defendant in the case

and cited in a police report.

Forest Pharmaceuticals is accused of failing to warn the nurse

practitioner that Lexapro could enhance the risk of suicide in teenage

patients, and that April's worsening symptoms were caused at least in

part by the drug. The nurse practitioner is accused of failing to take

appropriate action to protect the teen.

Citing patient confidentiality laws, PLU spokesman Greg Brewis

declined to comment on the allegations against PLU, but expressed

sympathy on behalf of the university and the Wellness Center for

families and friends affected by suicide.

" We have absolute confidence in the work of the Wellness Center staff

and stand fully behind the care that they provide for a wide range of

physical and mental ailments, including depression, stress and

anxiety, " he said in a written statement.

Ipsaro, a lawyer in Cincinnati representing Forest Laboratories,

also declined to comment on the allegations. However, he referred The

News Tribune to the corporation's filing in a Missouri lawsuit that

argues there's no evidence the antidepressant causes people to kill

themselves. It contends most of the patients in that lawsuit were

diagnosed with depression, had a long history of mental health

problems or talked about suicide before they began taking an

antidepressant.