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COLUMBUS, Ind. (AP) — You're afraid of me, Malachi Cole told his parents.
Then 9 years old, Malachi feigned throwing something gripped in his hand. His parents flinched.
"See, you are," Malachi said triumphantly.
John and Diane Cole tried to hide it from their son, but they were scared.
The Bartholomew County couple adopted Malachi from the foster care system in February 2008, when he was 3 years old. About six months later, he was taken to a local hospital for a 10-day psychiatric stay. It would be the first of many.
Malachi was diagnosed with fetal alcohol syndrome, pervasive developmental disability, mood disorder, mild mental retardation, feeding disorder and seizures, according to therapeutic records provided to The Star (http://indy.st/1G5693D ) by his parents.
As Malachi got older, his behavior became more extreme. He had total meltdowns, lying on the floor kicking and screaming. He punched a hole in the wall. He ran away. On separate occasions, he whipped his mom with a belt and kicked her in the stomach.
"I'd say we were helpless, but it's almost like we were prisoners in our own home, too," John Cole said.
Malachi was receiving services through a local mental health program, but it wasn't enough to meet his needs.
By 2013, the Coles were at their wits' end. They considered refusing to pick up Malachi from residential placement, which is a facility with 24-hour care — even if it meant being accused of neglect.
Then the Coles heard about the Children's Mental Health Initiative. The program was created in 2012 to help children who weren't eligible for Medicaid and whose private insurance didn't cover the cost of more intensive mental health services.
For years, children who didn't receive needed services often entered the court system as juvenile delinquents or as children in need of services. Some parents even falsely claimed they had neglected their children in order to secure services.
The Indiana Department of Child Services, the Family and Social Services Administration's Division of Mental Health and Addiction and other agencies designed the mental health initiative to connect children with appropriate services without court intervention. It's meant for the most severe situations — children who are dangers to themselves or others.
Two years into the program, officials say they are seeing progress. Although some children's situations have been challenging, there's no question that most are receiving services they would not have received before.
"It may not be perfect, but it does not leave anyone hanging without services," said Lisa Rich, DCS' deputy director of services and outcomes.
Since its inception, more than 1,600 children have been referred to the voluntary program and evaluated by a local access site. Of those, 433 kids, including Malachi, have received mental health services paid by DCS.
The rest either still are moving through the process, did not meet the level of need established by state guidelines or were not accepted because they already had access to services through probation departments, Medicaid or the child welfare system. Some parents declined to participate.
Children with less severe problems are referred to DCS' community partners program, which connects them with mental health services.
The majority of children who receive services through the mental health initiative live at home, according to data provided by DCS. Sixty-three children went to psychiatric residential treatment facilities. Six others were placed at a state hospital, and two ended up in the juvenile justice system.
DCS Director Mary Beth Bonaventura said the mental health initiative is "life-changing" for the families it serves.
"We have a new safety net for these kids," Rich said. "It's much larger than we ever thought it would be."
DCS spent about $10.7 million on the program through June 30, 2014, state records show. That amount includes the cost of services for kids who were in the child welfare system because of their mental health diagnoses but would be transitioning into the mental health initiative. It likely will cost more in the future, though, because this is the first year the initiative is operating in all 92 counties.
State officials said the program also spurred a new level of cooperation among agencies. Instead of each agency evaluating a child individually, the agencies work together to determine the best way to get each child the services he or she needs, said Rebecca Buhner, assistant deputy director for youth services at the Division of Mental Health and Addiction.
Several teams of officials meet regularly to evaluate individual cases and the effectiveness of the entire system.
"They're all our kids," said Julie Reynolds, director of the Bureau of Developmental Disabilities Services.
A Florida man said he had high hopes for the Children's Mental Health Initiative when his 16-year-old son entered the program in late 2013.
The Indianapolis Star agreed not to name the boy or his parents because his entrance into the program was, in part, related to allegations of inappropriate sexual behavior.
The 16-year-old, who lives with his mom on the Northeastside, was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and oppositional defiant disorder, according to mental health records.
The teen, whose parents adopted him in 2001, has been hospitalized nine times since he was 7 years old, including a 10-month stay in residential placement.
He has a history of violent behavior, according to records from the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department.
On Oct. 18, 2011, the teen attacked a teacher at school, shoving her against a bookcase so hard that she fell, according to police records. Then he pinned her against the bookcase and grabbed her wrists to keep her from moving.
Right after the incident, a school police officer said the boy seemed to have no control of his emotions. He sobbed uncontrollably, calmed down, then resumed sobbing, according to police records.
On Sept. 17, 2013, the teen's stepmother caught him peeing in a bowl and leaving it in the bathroom at his dad and stepmother's house. He also defecated in a closet. When his stepmother tried to discipline him for doing so, the teen became enraged, according to police records. He threatened her with a fire poker, threw a chair and tried to punch a wall.
His stepmom tried to restrain him from damaging anything else, but he got away from her and sprinted out the front door, police records show. He later showed up at his mom's house about 5 miles away.
On two other occasions, the teen climbed into his stepmother's bed and rubbed himself against her, according to an assessment from a home-based therapist. His stepmother said the teen also masturbated with his bedroom door open and laughed when someone walked in.
He was accepted into the Children's Mental Health Initiative in November 2013, the family said, and immediately began to receive services.
But the teen's father said the program hasn't delivered. He said his son's case is complicated because it is particularly severe, and he and his ex-wife don't see eye to eye on treatment.
The boy's mother did not return calls from The Star.
But his father said the main problem with the mental health initiative is that his son's case doesn't have clear goals.
More than a year into the program, the teen's father said, his son still is acting out and failing most of his classes at school.
"There's been a slight improvement but not to the degree he's getting his needs served," his father said. "I'm sure they've thrown lots of money at (my son) and are providing (him) services, but there's no tracking of progress."
The boy's stepmother said a program spending as much taxpayer money as this one should better document how it is helping Indiana children and families.
"The program has good intentions but no foundation," she said.
But John Cole has had a different experience with the program.
He said the Children's Mental Health Initiative has been a "lifesaver" for his son Malachi — and the entire family. Cole said officials connected to the program have been proactive in suggesting and paying for services for his son.
Malachi, now 10, lives at a Damar Services facility for most of the week. He spends some weekends with his parents, with the eventual goal of moving back home.
Cole said his son is incredibly intelligent and articulate, with a magnetic personality that draws people to him.
But Malachi still struggles to control himself when he gets angry.
"He's making progress," Cole said. "It's slow. He's learning to use coping skills when he gets in a fit or upset, rather than lashing out."
The Coles said they hope the Children's Mental Health Initiative will help Malachi become a valuable member of the community.
"We want Malachi to have the same chances and opportunities that other kids have," John Cole said. "I mean, he deserves it with all the things he experienced in his short life."
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Information from: The Indianapolis Star, http://www.indystar.com
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