San Carlos Apache teen Emily Pike was found slain in February after disappearing from a group home in Mesa. Her father recently filed a lawsuit alleging negligence by the home led to Emily’s death. The facility has since responded in an Oct. 15 filing before Maricopa County Superior Court.
Sacred Journey is demanding a jury trial to settle the matter.
The company contends that they’re not at fault for the 14-year-old’s murder, but blame many others. Sacred Journey claims Emily’s parents — Jensen Pike and Stephanie Dosela — were “unfit, unresponsive and neglectful,” hence why she was in the San Carlos Apache Tribe’s custody to begin with.
Even the tribe faces scrutiny from the facility, saying their professionals placed Emily into a “non-secure, voluntary residential home.” When asked, the San Carlos Apache Tribe did not comment on the group home's legal reply.
Sacred Journey also says Emily “left of her own free will.”
Her murderer is still unknown and remains at large eight months after her dismembered body was discovered inside the Tonto National Forest more than 100 miles from where she was last seen in the Valley.
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Patty Talahongva is an Arizona native and a longtime journalist; she’s also directed and produced documentaries, among other roles.
