4 Arrested in Death of 10-Year-Old

Friday, May 19, 2000; 7:28 a.m. EDT

GOLDEN, Colo. –– Four people were arrested after a 10-year-old girl suffocated while undergoing therapy intended to simulate birth, the sheriff's office said.

Candace Newmaker was rolled up in a flannel sheet during the treatment at Connell Watkins and Associates in Evergreen and died of asphyxiation, the coroner said.

Both ends of the sheet were twisted above the girl's head and large pillows were placed around her head. It was supposed to represent the womb.

Connell Watkins, the center's owner, told authorities she and three others pressed on the pillows to simulate labor contractions and encouraged Candace to push her way out.

Candace and her mother, Jeane Newmaker, came from Durham, N.C., to the counseling center for the April 18 session. The therapy is intended to enable troubled children to heal from past trauma by struggling out of the covering and being "reborn."

Newmaker said she adopted Candace in 1996 and had sought several different treatments for her, including help for depression and attention deficit disorder. She said she contracted with Watkins for a two-week intensive program for $7,000.

Julie Ponder, 39, a therapist who was leading the session, and the others called paramedics after they unrolled the blanket and found that Candace wasn't breathing. She died at a hospital the next day.

Ponder along with Brita St. Clair, 41, the center's business manager; and Jack McDaniel 47, an intern, were charged Thursday with child abuse resulting in death. Each was jailed on $250,000 bond.

An arrest warrant was also issued for Watkins, 53, who was not immediately taken into custody.

Ponder said she didn't know Candace was having problems during the session. McDaniel and St. Clair were helping her while the girl's mother talked to her daughter and Watkins videotaped the session.

The Jefferson County Sheriff's Office said the videotape shows that Candace complained several times that she couldn't breathe and told them she had to vomit, authorities said.

© Copyright 2000 The Associated Press