Iowa center called police nearly 1,000 times in 3 years before teen killed staffer, records show

By JIM SALTER
Associated Press

Police records show that officers responded nearly 1,000 times in the past three years to an Iowa juvenile treatment center where a staff member was killed. Police say 50-year-old Kathleen Galloway-Menke was assaulted May 8 by a 15-year-old resident at the center, Ellipsis Iowa, in the Des Moines suburb of Johnston. She suffered brain damage and died Tuesday after life support was removed. Ellipsis formed in August 2021. Records provided by Johnston police show that the nearly 1,000 calls to the center since then include 676 calls for runaways and 72 reported assaults. Last year alone, 251 runaways were reported, and 31 assaults, among 382 total police calls to the center.