A former treatment facility in Detroit is the subject of a newly filed lawsuit, alleging that a teen was sexually abused while there.
The Detroit Behavioral Institute and Acadia Healthcare are listed in a new lawsuit filed in the Wayne County Circuit Court. According to the lawsuit, a 17-year-old was sent to the facility in 2015 and was allegedly sexually abused and groomed by a staff member over the next year.
“When he was restraining her, he’d fondle her and grope her. And it was under this sort of idea that he was calming her down,” said attorney Nicholas Wainwright with Gould, Grieco, and Hensley.
According to the lawsuit, the institute had two locations in Detroit, but the state suspended its license in 2022 after continuous abuse allegations.
Acadia Healthcare currently operates several treatment facilities in Michigan and across the country. CBS News Detroit reached out to the company on Wednesday and is awaiting a response.
“This is a company with a litany of problems at the state and federal level,” Wainwright told CBS News Detroit.
The lawsuit alleges that a staff member went as far as purchasing underwear for the victim.
“He would buy her lacy underwear, have inappropriate conversations about having affairs and cheating on his wife,” Wainwright said.
Last year, several victims filed lawsuits against Detroit Behavioral Institute and Acadia Healthcare, alleging similar accusations. The litigation for that case is still ongoing.
“How are they making sure, when two people restrain a kid, we’re checking to make sure the way they said it went down is the way it went down,” Wainwright said.
Wainwright alleges that the company started putting profits over people, which is when problems began to escalate.
“Then they stop focusing on things like hiring the top tier indivudals to be there, because they cost more money. They start focusing on how we can do this – cheaper and cheaper and cheaper,” Wainwright said.
According to the lawsuit, the victim suffered extreme emotional damage from her time at the facility.