Queen Creek police are reviewing security and response protocols after records revealed that a local residential facility filed more than 600 missing person reports over a four-year period. The data highlights concerns from families and advocates about the safety of youth in the state’s care.
The statistics come in the wake of the death of Xion Ervin-Jenkins, a 15-year-old who died after leaving the Canyon State Academy campus. His mother, Stephanie Combs, stated that a juvenile court judge ordered her son to attend the residential treatment program in the spring of 2025.
She arrived at the Queen Creek location on May 21, 2025, after a wildfire forced an evacuation from his previous placement. He disappeared a few days after his arrival.
Combs learned of her son’s death six weeks later when Phoenix police visited her home on July 4, 2025. She reported that officers informed her he had been found deceased. She noted that she will never know the specific reasons he chose to run away. She keeps his bedroom exactly as he left it, with drawers open and shoes on the floor.
ABC15 examined call-for-service records from the Queen Creek Police Department spanning from January 2022 to September 2025. The review found that the Canyon State Academy for boys and the adjacent Desert Lily Academy for girls generated over 600 missing person calls during that timeframe.
A spokesperson for the academies stated that the combined facility serves approximately 600 youth annually and is the largest group home licensed by the Arizona Department of Child Safety.
Leila Woodard, founder of the Arizona Missing Child Task Force, said the facility is losing youth at a faster rate than any other home in the state. She emphasized that her organization works to prevent runaways and support families. Woodard stated that the rapid number of disappearances is a critical issue requiring attention.
