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--> --> Trial date set Sept. 6 for youth shelter case By Maggie McGehee Ashland Daily Tidings Two former Community Works Youth Diagnostic Center employees alleged to have sexually assaulted, sodomized and harassed eight youth in their care will go to court Sept. 6. The trial date in Jackson County Circuit Court for Desiree Joy Seiver, 22, of Central Point, and Wayne Randall Gatrel, 42, of Medford, was set Friday, according to Jackson County District Attorney Mark Huddleston. Seiver and Gatrel face 32 combined charges spanning the six-month time period they worked at the shelter before two teens filed complaints. All of the eight teens Gatrel and Seiver allegedly abused were either 15 or 16 years old, according to Huddleston. Seiver faces four counts of using a child in display of sexually explicit conduct, two counts of delivering a controlled substance to a minor, two counts of endangering the welfare of a minor, two counts of contributing to the sexual delinquency of a minor, one count of third-degree attempted rape, three counts of rape in the third degree, two counts of sodomy in the third degree, along with coercion and racketeering charges. Gatrel faces four charges of using a child in display of sexually explicit conduct, two counts of contributing to the sexual delinquency of a minor, five counts of third-degree sexual abuse, and one count each of attempted contributing to the sexual delinquency of a minor, harassment and racketeering. All together, Seiver's charges amount to seven class A felonies, five class A misdemeanors and six class C felonies. Gatrel's charges include five class A felonies, eight class A misdemeanors and one class B felony. The maximum sentence for a class A felony is 20 years in prison, a $300,000 fine, or both. For a class B felony, the maximum penalty is 10 years in prison, a $200,000 fine, or both. The maximum penalty for a class A misdemeanor is one year in prison, a $5,000 fine or both, according to officials at the district attorney's office. Oregon State Police Lt. Kurt Barthel has been investigating the matter since March, when two youth staying at the shelter made allegations of sexual assault and misconduct by two of adult employees. The OSP investigation began in March with allegations that the two supervisors working at the shelter on the night of March 2 were involved in two separate incidents involving a 15-year-old boy and a 16-year-old girl. In one allegation Seiver allegedly gave a 15-year-old boy a package of cigarettes in exchange for sex. In the second allegation Gatrel allegedly allowed a 16-year-old girl to leave the shelter to see her boyfriend. When she returned, he allegedly insisted that she show him her breasts. The families of the two teens are in the midst of filing a civil suit against Community Works. Community Works Executive Director Arnie Green said that Seiver and Gatrel had worked at the shelter for about six months before the incident and were dismissed as soon as the allegations were made. He had no comment on other details of their employment. All the teens at the shelter have been evacuated and the facility has been closed indefinitely. The 16-bed shelter located at 5605 S. Pacific Highway has been serving youth in Jackson County for more than 27 years and about 300 teens stay at the shelter each year. The children and teens are not wards of the criminal justice system, but are often from abusive or neglectful families and need shelter. They have since been moved to other facilities. Email your... Technical questions & comments to: WebMaster Daily Tidings editorial comments & questions to: Editor Visit our other Oregon Newspapers... | Albany Democrat-Herald | Ashland Daily Tidings | Corvallis Gazette-Times | | Lebanon Express | Newport News-Times | Springfield News | Cottage Grove Sentinel | Ashland Daily Tidings 1661 Siskiyou Blvd. Ashland, OR 97520 Telephone 541-482-3456 © Copyright 2001 Lee Northwest Publishing