Sequel Youth and Family Services received nearly $9 million in reimbursement payments from the state of Michigan in 2019, according to the state. 5. If you are representing the estate of a loved one who has died as a result of abuse, or as a result of self-harm from abuse, you may qualify to file a wrongful death lawsuit against Sequel or at-fault parties. Published: May. Tristan, now 18, was placed into foster care on his 12th birthday and bounced between group homes until 2018, when he landed at Tuskegee, an intensive psychiatric treatment facility. 2.8. That national corporation also owns Woodward Academy and Forest Ridge Youth Services in . A nonprofit organization in Kansas will take over a Sequel treatment center there, according to Kansas City public radio station KCUR. Sequel Youth & Family Services specializes in treating children with mental disorders, intellectual disabilities and trauma, which makes . But rather than get better, Laurie said, girls at Owens Cross Roads seemed to get worse. University of Baltimore Merrick School of Business, according to Kansas City public radio station KCUR. Hunter was assaulted multiple times by other children, including by his roommate, in full view of Sequels staff, according to a lawsuit his family filed against Sequel this week. Those close relationships come in handy when the company faces scrutiny. Sequel staff members shared the companys side of the issue and discussed how to deal with concerns among state lawmakers. In 2017, when a private equity firm bought a controlling stake in Sequel Youth & Family Services, it had 35 residential treatment centers in 16 states. The facilities at the heart of the issue are run by Sequel Youth and Family Services. MOUNT PLEASANT, Utah (AP) A company that runs treatment centers for troubled youth is closing a second Utah facility as officials investigate claims of sexual abuse, violence and several other . In 2020, 16-year-old Cornelius Frederick died after he was reportedly smothered to death by Sequel employees in Michigan after he threw a sandwich. Ripley did not return a voicemail message seeking comment, and Altamont didnt answer an email inquiry. Sequel cares for more than 9,000 clients across the U.S., including foster children, children whose parents are unable to handle their behavior and children in the states juvenile justice system. Sequel declined to make Ripley available for an interview, and instead set up an interview with Birmingham, who handles compliance. You may qualify to take legal action, to seek compensation for the damages that you incurred from the abuse in a Sequel facility, if you or a loved one suffered: This applies to, both, currently operational facilities and closed facilities. Sequel, a company with locations in 20 states that turned a $25 million profit in 2016, markets itself as a national leader in providing specialized care for at-risk youth. Glenda Marshall, a program coordinator for Oregons state child welfare agency, wrote in a 2016 email to Shoemaker that the state had been struggling to find placements for foster youth. In 2020, a lawsuit filed on behalf of a 14-year-old against the Sequel facility in north Alabama alleged that the teenager suffered long-term abuse at the hands of staff and other children residing at the facility. Attorneys at TorHoerman Law have first-hand experience with these sorts of facilities and can help you gain justice and compensation. I highly recommend this law firm! 2.6. Last August, Sequels Pompano Youth Treatment Center failed a state inspection that found a range of deficiencies at the 24-bed Florida treatment center. If you or a loved one took Elmiron and subsequently suffered vision loss, blindness, or any other eye injury linked to the prescription drug. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website. For 72 hours, staff members left him in a small room outfitted with a thin mattress and a camera on the ceiling, he said. These cookies do not store any personal information. The lawsuit filed Tuesday in Lawrence County Circuit Court claims Sequel TSI of Alabama has a history of staff physically abusing children at its facilities, encouraging fights among children and . The Alabama Department of Youth Services contracts with the facility as a private provider, placing boys there for a maximum stay of 120 days. The State of Iowas placing some of these young people in this unrestricted environment is frankly absurd.. Sequel disputes the findings and the facility remains open. Red Rock Canyon School, another Sequel-ran facility, closed in 2019 after reports of abuse surfaced and a riot among residents ensued, resulting in area SWAT teams responding. Two dozen people sat quietly in a conference room at the University of Baltimore on Oct. 1, 2015, as Sequel co-founder Jay Ripley, dressed neatly in a blazer and tie, explained why he had built a company that largely ran on taxpayer money. Northern Illinois Academy (NIA), located in Aurora, Illinois, is an 87-bed facility that receives funding from the Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS), the Department of Healthcare and Family Services (HFS), and the . But despite those efforts, in 2020, a 16-year-old boy died after staff at Sequels Lakeside Academy in Kalamazoo, Michigan, held him on the floor for 12 minutes. This rating has decreased by -5% over the last 12 months. Sequel was established to operate Clarinda Academy in Iowa, but soon expanded to operate dozens of youth residential treatment facilities around the country. Sequel treatment centers closed since 2017. Tommy James is an attorney representing a 16-year-old named Hunter who lived at a Sequel facility in Courtland for 10 months. Birmingham said that seclusion which the company refers to as controlled observation and physical restraints are supposed to be last resorts and are not meant to be punitive. My client lived in a house of horrors. Headquartered in Huntsville, Alabama, the company currently operates youth behavioral centers in 17 states, totaling 34 establishments. Kids that are already damaged, been through enough in their life, to go somewhere thats supposed to help them, help them become productive members of society, and go there and then it just destroys them.. SHERIDAN Normative Services Academy, Inc. will close its doors March 22 "after an evaluation of viability of the Normative Services program," according to a press release sent Wednesday morning by NSI Executive Director Clayton Carr. They contacted me the next day. 1 (July 2, 2020) (hereinafter "ADAP"). Contact us today to see if you qualify for the Paraquat Parkinsons Disease Lawsuit! A woman who answered the phone at Capital Academy and asked not to be identified said it was not part of Vivant. For children who qualify, Medicaid reimburses Sequel for medical and mental health treatment. A majority stake in Sequel was bought by Altamont Capital, a private equity firm located in California, in 2017. But nobody came. May 28, 2021 Sequel Youth and Family Services and the Troubled Teen Industry (Residential Treatment Program/Facility Abuse and Neglect) October 30, 2020 Tommy James Law Files Civil Lawsuit in LeBrawn Rankin Tragedy. In recent years, lawyers and child advocates have surfaced allegations of abuse of children . Sequel Youth & Family Services has also faced criticisms. If you or someone you know is in crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255, text HOME to 741741 or visit SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources for additional resources. Ask a question about working or interviewing at Sequel Youth and Family Services. According to Tristan, and confirmed by state records and accounts from advocates and four former foster children, the staff regularly used seclusion, sometimes for days, at Tuskegee and Owens Cross Roads. Tommy James, an attorney representing the boy identified only as Hunter C., said his client lived at Sequel TSI of Courtland in 2018 and 2019, where . Those included sexual abuse by staff, bullying by residents, inappropriate physical restraints and employees sleeping on the job, according to records. A residential school operated by Sequel Youth and Family Services is set to permanently shutdown its operations. KALAMAZOO, Mich. The family attorney for Cornelius Fredericks's estate fought to enter new evidence in the on-going civil lawsuit against Lakeside Academy and Sequel Youth Family Services, but . He complained that Forest Ridge was admitting children they were not qualified to care for, were allowing children to prey on one another, and were failing to keep children safe by allowing them to leave the facility unsupervised., The report also includes an email Martens sent the state last April: It is time for a change of how business is conducted. Toxic chemicals in Aqueous Film-Forming Foam (AFFF Firefighting Foam) have been linked to numerous types of cancer, including: AFFF Firefighting Foam lawsuits aim to hold manufacturers accountable for putting peoples health at risk. Youth Residential Treatment Facility Abuse Lawsuit. Here's everything you need to know about "The Grinch" sequel, plus the best books your kid can check out now. A concrete slab at Sequel's Courtland facility where thin mattresses are placed for children to sleep. Many of the children served by Sequel are victims with traumatic histories. You may be eligible to file a Hair Straightener Cancer Lawsuit if you or a loved one used chemical hair straighteners, hair relaxers, or other similar hair products, and subsequently were diagnosed with: Over one million people, who were present at Camp Lejeune (North Carolina) between 1953 and 1987, may have been exposed to toxic substances in the water. The most common issue reported at youth residential treatment facilities is physical abuse, either at the hands of employees or other residents. Posted 6:12:41 PM. The attorneys and staff at THL worked hard, communicated every step of the process, kept me well informed at all times, and exceeded all expectations! Alabama, however, is among the states that have permitted Sequel to continue operating. Hindman had founded the Jiffy Lube chain of auto service centers, and Ripley worked for him. Records show that about two weeks later, Department of Human Resources Commissioner Nancy Buckner forwarded two new contracts with Sequel to Alabama Gov. 2.8 out of 5 stars for Work/Life Balance. She said she regularly witnessed staff members putting girls into violent restraints, to the point where they struggled to breathe, allegations also documented by the Alabama Disabilities Advocacy Program and in NBC News interviews with other former residents. Sequel settled a lawsuit from Fredrick's family in December. You cut off the head. The company collected over $200 million in annual revenue at the time, he said, and turned about $30 million in profit, which he attributed to keeping staffing costs low. 80. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. C-Suite Team Hired to Accelerate Growth of Industry Leading Behavioral Health Company. You deserve to be heard and we believe you. 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