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Ohio recently announced it was forcing Sequel Pomegranate to relinquish its license to operate its residential treatment facility. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent. We encourage the following groups of people to step forward in confidence: An NBC News investigation sorted through more than 10,000 pages and records from 14 states, and interviews with former Sequel residents and parents showing how Sequel became one of the largest behavioral health youth facilities in the United States. Visit our website or call us toll-free in the United States at 800-295-3959 to find local attorneys in you state who may assist you with your claim against Sequel. The company used marketing to secure state funding, despite government inspections flagging violations. And Sequels Capital Academy in New Jersey is now controlled by a local company called Willow Grove LLC. . 137. It also ran outpatient programs in a handful of others. Attorneys at TorHoerman Law have first-hand experience with these sorts of facilities and can help you gain justice and compensation. We've recovered over $4 Billion in verdicts & settlements, 16 Camp Lejeune Water Contamination Diseases & Symptoms, Sequel Youth and Family Services Abuse Lawsuit. 1:07. See Monitoring Report for Sequel Youth and Family Services of Courtland, Ala. Disabilities Advoc. An NBC News investigation sorted through tens of thousands of documents and found dozens of reports of sexual and physical abuse. Sequel operates youth psychiatric care facilities in 19 states, including several facilities in Alabama. A typical day consisted of supervising juvenile males aged 13-18, during their daily activities including school, groups, meal times, hygiene, etc. They helped me when I needed expert legal representation! Toys litter the floor at Sequel's Courtland facility. He returned to youth treatment in 1999, taking over a former YSI treatment center in Iowa. Enter your email below to receive notifications of new stories. Vivant, which does not have a website or any listed phone numbers, sent APM Reports an email asking for questions in writing, but it did not answer them. 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. 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 . Government regulators and the media took notice. Children at Sequels other facilities in Alabama Montgomery, Owens Cross Roads and Tuskegee also had stories to tell. Dont' waste time, contact our law offices today. Attorney Tommy James has a record of helping individuals file lawsuits for compensation against those who have harmed them. State Pulling All Students in Its Care from Northern Illinois Academy Following Reports of Abuse, 16 Diseases & Symptoms Of Camp Lejeune Water Contamination, Baby Formula NEC Lawsuit Payout & Settlements, Camp Lejeune Water Contamination Settlement Amounts, Hair Straightener Endometrial Cancer Lawsuit, Hair Straightening Cancer Lawsuit Settlement Amounts, Projected Paraquat Lawsuit Settlement Amounts. Marshall also traded messages with Sequels marketing staff monitoring Gelsers social media activity when the lawmaker toured Sequel facilities that year. Sequel is playing hide the ball, and theyre trying to avoid accountability and responsibility for [what they did] to these children and our clients, said Tommy James, an attorney in Birmingham, Alabama, who has three suits pending against Sequel facilities now controlled by Vivant. No information will be shared unless you, as a client, first approve. At TorHoerman Law, we believe that if we continue to focus on the people that we represent, and continue to be true to the people that we are justice will always be served. A lawsuit was filed Wednesday against Sequel Youth and Family Services, LLC in Macon County, Alabama Circuit Court, asserting claims of severe abuse and neglect of a 15-year-old boy at Sequel's . In Alabama Vivants application for a business registration was signed by Ripleys daughter, Christine Aron, who previously served as Sequels vice president of business development. They did not return our calls . For more of NBC News' in-depth reporting, download the NBC News app. 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. You can make money in this business if you control staffing, said Ripley, who at the time made $104,167 per month from Sequel as chairman, according to a financial disclosure. lawsuits and interviews with former residents, staff . For what theyve done, and what theyre not doing. Can I sue a Sequel facility that is closed? Video Shows Fatal Restraint of Cornelius Frederick, 16, in Michigan Foster Facility. Sequel disputes the findings and the facility remains open. Multiple lawsuits have been filed in Alabama, alleging rampant abuse in Sequels Courtland and Tuskegee facilities. In a statement, Sparkman wrote that the agency investigates allegations and that subsequent investigation records are confidential based on Alabama law.. Some girls tried to harm themselves just to get out of the facility, Laurie said, including herself. Tevin did not feel safe at Sequel Tuskegee. A woman who answered the phone at Capital Academy and asked not to be identified said it was not part of Vivant. Sequel Youth & Family Services specializes in treating children with mental disorders, intellectual disabilities and trauma, which makes . A wonderful and professional legal team. 1 (July 2, 2020) (hereinafter "ADAP"). Though their marketing and public statements espouse an aura of care and reverence for the well-being and progression of the residents they house, their company has been named in lawsuits that allege rampant physical, sexual, and mental/verbal abuse. 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.. Both of his eyes are black; one is swollen shut. Ask a Question. An NBC News investigation based on more than 10,000 pages of records from 14 states and interviews with former Sequel residents, their parents and attorneys, probation officers and watchdog groups reveals how Sequel became one of the biggest behavioral health youth facility operators in the country. Both before and after Cornelius Fredricks death, Sequel closed a number of their operations for a variety of reasons, ranging from understaffing and financial troubles to abuse allegations and criminal charges. Thank you TorHoerman Law! Tommy James is an attorney representing a 16-year-old named Hunter who lived at a Sequel facility in Courtland for 10 months. I dont want any other kid to have to go through that, Tristan said. SOURCE: The list of residential treatment facilities run by Sequel was assembled from public records and information from Sequel's websites. The lawsuit alleges that Pike was placed in isolation as punishment, sometimes for days, during which he had no access to food and water and was forced to urinate in the corner of the segregation room. Sparkman, the Alabama Department of Human Resources spokesman, said the agency could not comment on individual cases. Sequel shut down treatment centers where alleged abuse surfaced. Laurie and Tristan Broadrick are expecting their first child. On January 26, 2022, a lawsuit was filed on behalf of Tevin Pike against Sequel TSI of Alabama, Sequel TSI of Tuskegee, and Sequel Youth & Family Services LLC (Sequel), alleging that Pike was a former 15-year-old resident at an Alabama treatment facility for children run by Sequel TIS of Tuskegee, a residential psychiatric facility, for about two months in 2018, during which Pike was allegedly choked, beaten, punched, slapped and slammed to the ground by employees and other residents. Sequel settled a lawsuit from Fredricks family in December. When Tristan was 16, he tried to run away, and when he was caught, he said, Sequel employees put him in solitary confinement as a punishment. You think you're making progress, and then it just comes back stronger, Gelser said. Posted 6:12:41 PM. No parent would ever want their child to spend even one hour in a Sequel facility.. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. If you or a loved one suffered from abuse at a Sequel facility, camp, boarding school, or treatment center, consider contacting TorHoerman Law for legal help. The Alabama Department of Human . Sequel settled a lawsuit from Fredrick's family in December. Many states have reportedly revoked contracts with Sequel (but not Alabama). The report included photographic proof of the Dickensian conditions that the states most vulnerable children were forced to live in: broken doors, missing floor tiles, blood smeared on the walls and thin mattresses laid on top of concrete platforms. Sequel, she said, has also invested millions in improving care, staff training and oversight of its programs, doubling the size of its corporate compliance team. 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. The leadership is the problem.. The advocacy organizations monitors interviewed about 100 children, some as young as 12, and documented their findings in a report this summer. Hindman had founded the Jiffy Lube chain of auto service centers, and Ripley worked for him. TorHoerman Law was responsible for handling a medical case for our family. (Sequel said the free trips are not standard practice.). Sequel is headquartered in Huntsville, Alabama and owns a nationwide network of over 40 facilities in more than 15 states, including residential treatment centers, group homes, special schools, and community-based programs. (866) 577-2786. Our firm is about people. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. By clicking ACCEPT ALL, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. There is poor supervision, staff bullying and intimidation of the children. Plus, you will join a work environment where collaboration and support come naturally. After acquiring a new facility, Sequel uses its marketing arm to increase capacity and occupancy, as Ripley put it in a 2017 call to investors. They still struggle with anxieties, nightmares and the feeling that theyre behind their peers. The company is headquartered in Huntsville, Alabama and owns a nationwide network of over 40 facilities in more than 15 states, including residential treatment centers, group homes, special schools, and community-based programs. Jun 27, 2019, 15:09 ET. My client lived in a house of horrors. Sequel Youth & Family Services has an overall rating of 2.6 out of 5, based on over 205 reviews left anonymously by employees. Birmingham said Sequels marketing agents play a key role in receiving feedback from state officials and in helping the facilitys staffers get what they need to care for their residents. John Jay Ripley, one of Sequels founders, established Vivant Behavioral Healthcare in order to buy a majority of Sequel and eventually rebrand the company. Last year Sequel officials defended their treatment programs, stating through a crisis management firm that the company had increased staff training and oversight and was working on "phasing out the practice of physically restraining . Sequel was founded as a company in 1999. Sequel Youth and Family Services received nearly $9 million in reimbursement payments from the state of Michigan in 2019, according to the state. KRQE News 13 reached out may times to Sequel Youth and Family Services, which has seen similar closures and allegations in its other nationwide facilities recently. The first morning he woke up in the room, Tristan said, he waved his arms at the camera, pounded on the door and shouted for the staff to let him out to use the bathroom. The company kept growing by taking over other youth facilities and programs, fueled by investments from a handful of private equity firms. They described physical abuse by staff, Johnson said, and being denied medical care. On multiple occasions later in 2019, when Oregon state Sen. Sara Gelser emailed state officials demanding information about oversight of Sequel programs, government agents promptly forwarded the messages to Sequel employees for help responding. A 16-year-old Michigan boy went into cardiac arrest and died after several staff members of the residential treatment facility he stayed at restrained him, according to a lawsuit filed Monday. To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. With the goal of continuous improvement and our support, the company has consistently invested in quality and safety initiatives and in its staff to raise the bar and drive positive outcomes for thousands of individuals trusted to its care.. Story continues. The state pays Sequel Youth and Family Services about $330 per day, per child, the lawsuit states. It is owned and operated by Sequel Youth and Family Services and receives funding from the Department of Children and Family Services, the Department of Healthcare and Family Services and the . In 2020, Emmet County Sheriff Mike Martens contacted the state to complain about the burden Forest Ridge was placing on his department. I worked at Sequel Youth & Family full-time and the best day was my last! January 24, 2020 How Our Alabama Law Firm Investigates Nursing Home Abuse. Sequel declined to comment on Hunters case and his familys lawsuit. Those included sexual abuse by staff, bullying by residents, inappropriate physical restraints and employees sleeping on the job, according to records. Most of the former Sequel treatment centers that remain open are now controlled by Vivant Behavioral Healthcare, which was founded in 2021 by Jay Ripley, one of three people who founded Sequel in 1999. One firm, Altamont Capital Partners, which has investments in health care companies, Alamo Drafthouse Cinema and clothing brands like Billabong, purchased a majority stake in Sequel for an undisclosed amount in 2017. After her mother received a terminal cancer diagnosis, she became depressed and defiant, and struggled with suicidal thoughts. The fatal restraint of Cornelius Frederick, 16, at Lakeside Academy in Kalamazoo, Michigan, led to increased scrutiny of Sequel Youth and Family Services, the for-profit company that ran Lakeside. No information shared in consultations is shared unless first approved by our clients. A typical bedroom at Sequel's Courtland facility. Legal action is being strategized by our attorneys for Horizon Therapeutics failure to properly warn patients of potential hearing loss side effects. 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 . Records show that about two weeks later, Department of Human Resources Commissioner Nancy Buckner forwarded two new contracts with Sequel to Alabama Gov. At Courtland, where conditions had nauseated Johnson, state agencies received dozens of incident reports from 2018 to this summer detailing troubling allegations, including that children there had sustained injuries, such as a broken toe, a fractured ankle and a concussion, because of restraints. Sequel Youth and Family Services, a Huntsville, Ala.,-based for-profit company, will run the center effective April 1, said Amanda Fortuna, a spokeswoman for the Florida Department of Juvenile . At that point, I was so depressed I didnt know what to do, Laurie said. They also found the facility in disrepair, documenting missing sink handles, showers that had no hot water, moldy food, chairs with arms ripped off and nails exposed from torn upholstery on several couches. There was a particular room, said Johnson, investigations supervisor for the Alabama Disabilities Advocacy Program, a federally funded watchdog group that has the authority to monitor treatment facilities like Sequels and advocate for changes. All consultations are completely confidential and discrete. Overall rating. Instead, these children are suffering from abuse, and from the reports, Sequel isn't taking responsibility. And we either make drastic improvements at the facility, or we may choose not to operate that facility anymore.. Then children began to talk. We're ready to fight for you. Tax dollars are being used ultimately to abuse and mistreat children who are in need of serious therapeutic services, and weve sent them to these services for that, said K. Ricky Watson Jr., head of the National Juvenile Justice Network, which has advocated against for-profit juvenile detention. You may be entitled to financial compensation for your injuries and damages. Before they got out, the two crossed paths at a psychiatric hospital, where they were sent after trying to harm themselves. Work/Life Balance. In response to a list of questions laying out the findings of the APM Reports investigation, the company issued a lengthy written statement. The agency declined to explain what action it took in response to the email. For more information about potential legal action, you can contact an experienced Sequel abuse lawyer at TorHoerman Law for a free, no-obligation case consultation. A lawsuit filed against a Courtland psychiatric youth treatment facility in the Lawrence County Circuit Court System claims a teenage boy suffered abuse and neglect during his stay at the facility. The company cares for over 9,000 clients across the United States, including foster children, children in the state juvenile justice system, and children whose parents are unable to handle their behavior. The teen's family suit against the school and the company that owns it, Sequel Youth Services, seeks $100 million, alleging negligence. A concrete slab at Sequel's Courtland facility where thin mattresses are placed for children to sleep. A lawsuit was filed Wednesday against Sequel Youth and Family Services, LLC in Macon County, Alabama Circuit Court, asserting claims of severe abuse and neglect of a 15-year-old boy at Sequel's . The records revealed reports of child abuse and injury reports had been made to state agencies in Alabama, yet the facilities would still pass inspections. In recent years, lawyers and child advocates have surfaced allegations of abuse of children . The facilities at the heart of the issue are run by Sequel Youth and Family Services. But the marketing push could not overcome concerns several states had after Cornelius Fredericks death this year. Jay Ripley speaks at the Merrick School of Business in Baltimore in 2015. 2, 2022 at 8:08 PM PDT. What we do is we strive every day to provide the best care we can for kids in these facilities, Birmingham said. 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 . 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. Vivant hasnt bought all of Sequels remaining assets. TorHoerman Law is a personal injury law firm comprised of individuals who are dedicated to getting justice for those wrongfully injured by the tortious acts of others. Investigation reveals appalling conditions at for-profit Alabama youth home, Michigan facility 'lost all control' of children before staff fatally restrained teen, police say, 'They told me it was going to be a good place': Allegations of abuse at home for at-risk kids, Loosening the grip of restraint: Investigating allegations of abuse at youth homes. The closure was voluntary, but it came at the end of a difficult period for the program. Nearly all of Sequels programs run on government funding: States pay Sequel $275 to more than $800 a day per child to provide residential and therapeutic services. The treatment centers were run by Sequel Youth & Family Services, a "for-profit, $500-million company backed by Bay Area investors." . All of my questions were answered quickly and in a way I could understand. Cornelius tragic death has been a watershed moment for the fight against abuse in these facilities. An SEC filing that year pegged Sequels value at an estimated $421 million. The statute of limitations for each state determines the amount of time that a victim has to file an abuse lawsuit. He and the other children at Sequel Tuskegee were treated like animals by staff. Former Students at Utah Troubled-Teen Centers Say Their Reports of Sex Abuse Were Ignored. Sequel Youth and Family Services owns Falcon Ridge Ranch, the Utah center with the highest rate of reported sex crimes. Responsibilities of Executive Director: Manages 5 - 10 subordinate supervisors who supervise a total of 50 - 55 employees. 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 young couple are expecting their first child and trying to build a new life for themselves on Alabamas Gulf Coast, working at Lauries familys carpet business. What Caused Camp Lejeune Water Contamination? Employee at Teen Behavior Facility Arrested for Sexual Battery, Showing Porn to Minors. Headquartered in Huntsville, Alabama, the company currently operates youth behavioral centers in 17 states, totaling 34 establishments. The attorneys at THL were extremely helpful with the legal aspects of setting up my small business. Youth Residential Treatment Facility Abuse Lawsuit. 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. The name isn't the problem. Sequel Youth & Family Services provides a broad spectrum of treatment programs to people of all ages with behavioral, emotional, and physical challenges. 97. Last year, Tennessee, which had paid Sequel up to $608 a day per child, suspended admissions to Kingston and the states Medicaid agency terminated its contract with Sequel. 5. Sequel is a privately-owned, for-profit operator of behavioral healthcare facilities for children and youth in the United States. Forms of abuse that qualify for the Sequel lawsuit are: If you have suffered the loss of a loved one due to abuse at a Sequel facility, or you represent the estate of a victim, or you are the legal guardian of an underaged victim, you may be able to represent the victim in a lawsuit. Our experienced team of child sexual abuse lawyers represents victims across a number of different case types, including in cases similar to the Sequel Youth & Family Services lawsuit. Neither side disclosed the terms of the settlement. OWENS CROSS ROADS, Ala. (WAFF) - The Sequel TSI facility in Owens Cross Roads will close on Saturday. The lawsuits reinforce the findings of a recent Huffington Post investigation that revealed more than two decades of abuse and neglect inside private prisons operated by Youth Services International and other companies run by its founder, James Slattery. In a civil lawsuit filed Monday against Lakeside Academy and Sequel Youth and Family Services, the family said the teen screamed "I can't breathe" as staff members .

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