“Instead of helping him manage his emotions, they locked him away,” said Ciara Boerman, an attorney representing Blaise Chivers-King, during opening statements on Monday.
The first trial regarding allegations of abuse at the Wyoming Boys’ School began in Casper on Nov. 10, 2026, presenting two fundamentally different interpretations of how staff treated a young resident. The case, heard in U.S. District Court, centers on Chivers-King, who lived at the state-run facility between 2020 and 2022. He is one of six former residents who lodged formal complaints against the institution in 2024, according to usnews.com.
The 38-acre residential facility near Worland is overseen by the Wyoming Department of Family Services and is designed to detain delinquent youths between the ages of 12 and 21. While the plaintiff alleges his constitutional rights were violated through the use of excessive force and isolation, the defense maintains that the staff acted to manage safety within a high-pressure environment.
Conflicting views on isolation
The legal battle hinges on whether the treatment of Chivers-King constituted “solitary confinement” or necessary “detention status.” Boerman argued that staff isolated Chivers-King eight separate times, including one period that lasted 15 days.
She presented the jury with images of an isolation room where a window in the door was reportedly covered with a magnet, and claimed a staff member once used a mattress to block a crack under the door to prevent the boy from looking out.
Boerman also shared photos of an injury to Chivers-King’s head, alleging he hit himself against a wall while in isolation to seek human interaction. She stated that after the incident, staff required him to clean his own blood from the wall.
Catherine Young, an attorney for the defense, contested the characterization of these events. She asserted that the staff’s actions were responses to legitimate safety concerns and that the defendants did their best to keep everyone safe.
“You’ll see that it was not solitary confinement,” Young told the court, noting that the staff provided significant individual attention while the boy was on detention status.
Young further argued that the facility provided positive opportunities, such as arranging for Chivers-King to visit an animal shelter off campus to help him remain calm.
Allegations of excessive force
The trial also addressed specific physical encounters between Chivers-King and school staff. Boerman played video evidence for the jury showing Thad Shaffer, one of the named defendants, holding a riot shield while entering a room to restrain Chivers-King.
The defendants in this specific case include Thad Shaffer, Mike Nelson, and Dale Weber, the school’s superintendent. All three men were present in the courtroom on Monday.
Defense counsel Young argued that the use of a riot shield was a necessary safety measure during an altercation following problematic behavior. She noted that nursing staff attended to Chivers-King after the encounter and that he was physically fine.
The defense also pointed to Chivers-King’s physical stature and history to provide context for the staff’s caution.
“He was capable of hurting people, and sometimes did,” Young said, noting that Chivers-King stood over 6 feet tall and weighed approximately 270 pounds.
The long-term impact of trauma
The human stakes of the trial extend beyond the courtroom to the lasting mental health of the plaintiff. Boerman stated that Chivers-King continues to struggle with mental health issues and is becoming increasingly reclusive.
According to Boerman, a doctor has diagnosed Chivers-King with PTSD, which the medical professional believes is directly linked to his treatment at the Wyoming Boys’ School.
The defense offered a different perspective on the origins of these struggles. Young argued that Chivers-King’s childhood was marked by repeated abuse and neglect long before his arrival at the facility.
“In short, for much of Blaise’s childhood, chaos was his normal experience,” Young said.
The trial is expected to continue for five to seven days, with Chivers-King scheduled to testify on Tuesday.
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