Chief Justice Margaret Workman is writing an order that will be signed by the end of the week directing court staff to review records at the Industrial Home as well as other Division of Juvenile Services facilities if necessary, said Steve Canterbury, the court's administrative director.

Workman set up a commission earlier this month to look at the Industrial Home and the Kenneth "Honey" Rubenstein Center in Davis, though the commission could expand its scope.

"She's not waiting to the July 11 meeting. She wants to get information," Canterbury said of the chief justice. "The recent Gazette story is not dissimilar -- but far more tragic -- to other reports that have filtered through the court regarding certain operational issues at the Industrial Home for Youth."

On Wednesday, the Gazette reported that Benjamin Hill, 18, who died mysteriously at the center on Feb. 23, 2009, may have died of an overdose of an antidepressant he was prescribed. The documents were provided to the Gazette by an employee of the Industrial Home, which is located on the Harrison-Doddridge county line.

A police investigation, an autopsy report from the state medical examiner's office and an internal report from the Industrial Home all failed to determine how Hill died.

"The information in the story, if it turns out to be true, is shocking and alarming. There appears to be a lack of clarity in the procedures and they're also going to be inevitable questions raised in how the medical examiner conducted the autopsy," Canterbury said.

"However, I underscore that this is all unconfirmed and having worked in a system of secure facilities, I know things may sometimes appear to be what they turn out not to be on further examination," said Canterbury, a former director of the state Regional Jail Authority.

The antidepressant prescribed to Hill, trazodone, is not listed in his autopsy toxicology report. But records from Hill's file at the Industrial Home show him taking the drug on Feb. 22, 2009 -- the day before he died.

Included in the documents sent to the Gazette is a copy of an unsigned handwritten letter, which the employee said is from a resident of the Industrial Home who was a friend of Hill's. In the letter, the juvenile says he gave two other residents a total of 20 trazodone pills and that those residents gave the pills to Hill, so he could kill himself.

An internal memo to Industrial Home Superintendent Joe Merendino does not specifically mention the resident's letter about Hill and trazodone but states that the resident's medical record was reviewed to see if he had ever been prescribed the medication.

"After such review it was found that this resident has never been on this medication while at WVIHY," the memo states.

It makes no mention of why the resident's medical record was reviewed to see if he was ever prescribed trazodone.

A list of psychiatric medications Hill was on in the days prior to his death was also provided to the Gazette by the Industrial Home employee. According to the document, Hill was prescribed and took 75 milligrams of trazodone each day the week before he died.

The toxicology report from the state Medical Examiner's Office doesn't list trazodone as being in his blood.

At least a trace amount of the drug would be found in Hill's blood if he took the medication as prescribed or in a larger dose -- provided the medical examiner's office tested for it, said Dr. Yale Caplan, a consulting toxicologist and the former chief toxicologist for the state of Maryland.

Canterbury said the court just wants to get more information.

"Of all places, it is not the judiciary's habit to prejudge -- all evidence, all information, all points of view will be clearly weighed before any conclusions are reached and if necessary judgments are made," he said.

Reach Gary Harki at gha...@wvgazette.com or 304-348-5163.