SMETHPORT – A lawsuit has been filed by a former Beacon Light
Behavioral Health Systems Inc. employee who was on duty when a
14-year-old boy drowned at Heffner Reservoir in 2004.

Janel Riel, represented by attorney H.B. Fink of Port Allegany,
is suing Beacon Light in a complaint involving the May 23, 2004,
death of Dustin Dembinski.

According to the complaint, which was filed Tuesday in McKean
County Court, Riel was employed at Beacon Light as a mental health
technician level three.

On May 23, 2004, she and another employee, Ryan Swanson, were to
“find activities” for Dembinski and five other juvenile residents
of Beacon Light. They traveled to Heffner Reservoir “for the
primary purpose of flying kites,” the suit reads.

When they arrived at the reservoir, it was a warm day with no
wind and “the children asked if they could wade in the water,” the
suit reads.

Beacon Light was required by the Department of Public Welfare to
have an “in-place policy” regarding swimming, but according to the
lawsuit, had none at the time.

“It was a common occurrence that the Beacon Light residents
would be taken by the (staff) to swim in an appropriate place,” the
suit reads. Riel and Swanson allowed the children to swim near the
shore.

At this time, Riel noticed “that one child, Jose Torez, who
without permission tried to swim across the spillway and he was
having grave difficulty in swimming and staying above the water.”
She went in the water to assist, the suit reads.

“Jose was pushing her under the water and fighting her efforts
to assist him. (Riel) was tiring from her efforts to assist Jose
and told Jose to float on his back. During this time, Dustin
(Dembinski) was swimming in the area and having no apparent
problems. As (Riel) started to make her way back to the shore,
Dustin called for help and then disappeared under the water,” the
suit reads.

“As a result of what (Riel) observed concerning the swimming
difficulties of the boy, she herself dove in the water, at the same
time giving instructions as to what to do in view of their
difficulties and she was able to physically get a hold of the Torez
boy at the same time giving him instructions.

“Her efforts and instructions did save the life of Torez,” the
suit reads.

Dembinski drowned.

The Department of Public Welfare filed a complaint against Riel,
the suit reads. A hearing was held in Erie on the complaint. James
Wiseman, vice president and chief operating officer of Beacon
Light, testified at the hearing and, according to the suit,
“admitted that (Riel) was not culpable in any manner for the
drowning death of Dustin (Dembinski) as there was no written policy
in place concerning swimming not withstanding the requirement to
have such an in-place policy.”

The suit states that criminal charges were filed against Riel,
who went into the accelerated rehabilitative disposition program
“as she was emotionally unable to go through a trial. These charges
were filed even though the investigating police ruled that the
drowning was accidental.”

Fink goes on to challenge the assertion by both the district
attorney’s office and the Department of Public Welfare that there
were “well-placed no swimming signs at two locations” at Heffner
Reservoir, saying the signs were in fact antiquated, outdated,
weathered and ineffective, according to the suit.

“The water authority had a ‘tolerant’ attitude toward swimming
at the reservoir and swimming there was commonplace,” the suit
reads.

Fink also asserts that Riel was “pressured and induced” by
agents of Beacon Light to resign her position the week after the
boy’s death.

Before the criminal charges were filed, Beacon Light filed an
incident report with the Department of Public Welfare, the suit
states, claiming that the report said there was a no-swimming
policy in effect at the time. The suit alleges the report, which
was “clearly erroneous,” was written by Beacon Light Chief
Executive Officer Tom Urban and by Wiseman.

The suit also alleges that Urban and Wiseman “published and
distributed untrue statements in order to exonerate itself from an
responsibility whatsoever for the drowning death” of Dembinski,
instead placing the blame on Riel and Swanson.

Because of the incident and the subsequent statements, Riel is
unable to get suitable employment, the suit reads, leading to a
loss of her earning power.

She is asking for a sum in excess of $25,000, according to the
suit.

Beacon Light is represented by attorney Joseph Selep of Zimmer
Kunz of Pittsburgh.