After the fall

Bloomfield checked the restrooms and a nearby store. When Colt failed to show up, Bloomfield sent the vans back to camp. He remained behind in hopes that Colt would appear. One of the vans was speeding on the way back and was pulled over by a park ranger. That's when the rangers learned that, in the parlance of the park service, "there was an overdue hiker."

The DISD investigators went to Big Bend and climbed Emory Peak. They discovered how easy it was to get disoriented on top of the peak and be uncertain of the correct way to get down. Based on where Colt was found and what the rangers told them, they surmised that Colt had attempted to descend the mountain on the seemingly easier route off the right side. Coming down this way, climbers reach a point where they're forced to feel for footholds with their feet near a sheer drop-off. This would be a surprise to anyone who hadn't gone up that way.

"It is believed that Colt, probably disoriented, dizzy, fatigued, and suffering from a fear of heights, attempted to locate the route down and went to the wrong side and accidentally fell to his death," according to the DISD report.

The report concluded that several factors contributed to Colt's death: There were no specific safety procedures for climbing Emory Peak and a lack of adult supervision. Parents weren't fully informed of the hazardous nature of the rock climb, and the trip's organizers did not understand the hazards of the climb. The procedures for keeping track of students on the trail were inadequate, and organizers did nothing to evaluate or accommodate physical or psychological impairments of the students.

The report chastised the teacher sponsors for misjudging the maturity level of the TAG students, which led them to believe they did not need safety supervision. It also found several policy violations, including failure to notify the board and superintendent of the overnight field trip.

Mike Perryman found the investigators' report disturbing, especially the interview with teacher Marsha Evans, who seemed to blame Perryman for his son's demise. She told investigators that when she heard Perryman say during Colt's eulogy that he had a fear of heights, she was "appalled" that he let his son go on the trip.

In a way Perryman has always blamed himself. "I trusted the school district would keep my son safe," he says. "I trusted his teachers. They were supposed to be the best of the best. But I confused intelligence with common sense."

Perryman claims that Robbie Collins gave him a copy of the investigative report with the admonition that he should hire a lawyer. Collins, who is no longer with the district, did not return phone calls from the Dallas Observer. When Perryman said he was unsure of where to find a lawyer, Collins told him to contact the bar association. He did. The bar referred him to Dallas personal injury attorney Mike Polewski.

"I fucking hate lawyers" were Perryman's first words to Polewski. He wasn't sure why he was there. He didn't want to sue the district. He just wanted to make sure his rights were protected, and he wanted the district to make some changes.

DISD's own report, in fact, made several recommendations to improve the district field-trip policy. These included implementing a defined student/staff ratio sufficient to meet reasonable safety requirements with added help from parent volunteers. The report also called for a plan for medical emergencies; an explanation of any activity that may be hazardous and what safety procedures and precautions will be taken to ensure the safety of students; and any special training necessary for staff members and verification that staff who supervise students have such training.

Perryman hoped the district would adopt these safety guidelines, but in the fall of 1998, as the report was being finished, the only action the district took was to fire Bloomfield and suspend Evans, which caused a ruckus at Townview. Teachers at the school voted to cancel all field trips and extracurricular activities until Bloomfield and Evans were reinstated and the district revised its trip policy to give teachers more direction. Then 300 students staged a walkout and protested the teachers' decision at the administration building.

Evans eventually was allowed to return to work. Bloomfield challenged his firing on the grounds that he couldn't violate school policies that don't exist. They rescinded the firing, allowed him to resign, paid him for the full year, and promised to give him good recommendations. He now lives in East Texas and could not be reached for comment.

"I didn't ask for Mr. Bloomfield to be fired," Perryman says. "They did it to try and appease me instead of looking at what's wrong with the system and fix it. I have a personal problem with Mr. Bloomfield and Mr. Jean. They owe me and my family an explanation, but we're not going to get it."

Perryman believes that Steve Jean left his son on top of the mountain and that Colt fell trying to find an easier way down. He says the district investigators told him that if Colt had come down first, they would have seen and heard him fall off the edge of the mountain. The investigators threw a 50-pound rock down the chute that Colt fell in, and it made considerable noise. "There's no way he could have fallen without someone hearing or seeing something," Perryman says.