I argued that there had to be an alternative to suicide—a transfer from Dayton. I had learned that Dr. Judyth Box, a psychiatrist who had testified on his behalf at the last court hearing, had recently been appointed clinical director at the newly opened Central Ohio Regional Forensic Unit (CORFU), in Columbus.

At first, Tommy refused to consider a transfer from one maximum security hospital to another. CORFU was part of the Central Ohio Psychiatric Hospital (COPH), where Milligan had spent three months when he was fifteen years old. If he couldn’t get back to Athens and Dr. David Caul, Tommy insisted, he might as well be dead. I pointed out that since Dr. Box had treated other multiple personality patients, knew Dr. Caul very well, and had already shown interest in Billy’s case, she might be able to help him. Tommy finally agreed to be transferred.

The Department of Mental Health, the prosecutor, and the judge agreed that since this would be an internal transfer from one maximum security hospital to another, no court hearing would be required. But the wheels turned slowly.

One day, before the transfer, I received a call from another patient who said that Milligan—afraid he might hurt someone and jeopardize the transfer to Columbus—had volunteered to be put into seclusion. After four security guards got him into the seclusion room and strapped down his arms and legs, they jumped on him and beat him.

When I next saw Allen, on August 27, his left arm, now black and blue, was swollen, his left hand paralyzed. His left leg was bandaged. On September 22, 1981, he was transferred to the Central Ohio Regional Forensic Unit—in a wheelchair.

Shortly after his transfer, the Department of Mental Health filed a lawsuit against Billy Milligan for fifty thousand dollars to pay for his involuntary hospitalization and treatment at Athens, Lima, and Dayton. Billy’s attorneys later filed a countersuit, charging for murals he painted on the walls of Lima State Hospital and asking damages for physical abuse and malpractice. The countersuit was denied. The states suit is still pending.

Tanda, eager to be close to him, got a job in Columbus and moved in with his sister, Kathy. She loved him, she said, and wanted to be able to visit him often.

Dr. Box began the intensive therapy methods that had earlier been successful in fusing the personalities at the Athens Mental Health Center. She worked with David, Ragen, Arthur, Allen, Kevin, and, finally, was able to reach the Teacher. Each time I visited, Allen or Tommy would tell me I had just missed seeing the Teacher. Finally, I left them instructions to post a message in the room. The next time the Teacher was there, he was to phone me. About a week later, I got a call from him, saying “Hi, I hear you’ve been wanting to talk to me.

It was the first time I had spoken to the Teacher since we had gone over the manuscript of the book together, in Lima. Now we talked for a long time, and he was able to fill in some of the gaps that the others had no knowledge of.