New Hampshire
Ex-employee describes sex abuse, retaliation for complaints at NH youth detention facility
A woman who worked at New Hampshire’s youth detention center three decades ago testified Wednesday that supervisors and staff were dismissive at best and menacing at worst when she reported suspected abuse.
Karen Lemoine was the first witness in the first trial seeking to hold the state accountable for the abuse of children at the Sununu Youth Services Center, a Manchester facility once called the Youth Development Center. Since the state launched an investigation in 2019, more than 1,100 residents have filed lawsuits alleging six decades of physical, sexual and emotional abuse, and 11 former state workers have been arrested.
Lemoine left her job in 1991, four years before the arrival of David Meehan, whose lawsuit alleges he was routinely beaten, raped and locked in solitary confinement during his three years at the facility. His attorneys are seeking to use her testimony to prove that the state’s negligence in staffing and training led to his abuse.
FIRST OF NEARLY 1,200 LAWSUITS AGAINST NEW HAMPSHIRE YOUTH DETENTION CENTER SET FOR TRIAL
Referring to a state law that outlines the facility’s mission, attorney David Vicinanzo asked Lemoine if her workplace provided a “wholesome, caring environment.”
“No, it was my experience that it was a horrendous nightmare,” Lemoine said. “I never saw one wholesome interaction.”
She recalled kids cowering in fear in the corner of their rooms as she approached, including one boy who screamed “you don’t know what it’s like!” before describing a violent rape. Though she never witnessed sexual abuse, Lemoine said she saw handprints on kids’ arms and other signs of physical abuse, and she watched staffers drag children down stairs and viciously taunt a boy who had made multiple suicide attempts.
The Sununu Youth Services Center, in Manchester, N.H., stands among trees, Jan. 28, 2020. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, File)
“A lot of the people that worked there in those buildings were, in my opinion, far too rough, far too impatient and as time went on, it looked to me … that they actually were doing some of these things not because the kids were so unruly but as almost entertainment,” she said.
Lemoine said her initial attempts to raise concerns were met with polite brushoffs, but things soon escalated. A house manager crumpled up her written complaints and threw them at her. The superintendent said perhaps Lemoine was the problem. As she walked down dark corridors on her night shift, male staffers would “hip check” her and hiss “(expletive) rat!”
Another night, she was teaching several boys how to make cookies when one of them leaned over the counter and told her to be careful, she said. Workers had been telling residents that if they did as they were told, their reward would be having sex with Lemoine.
“I felt terrified for the rest of the night,” she said. “I had to walk those halls in that dark, big building with three guys in there, knowing that they were conspiring to teach teenagers how to rape me.”
Lemoine said there was a hearing to investigate, and one staffer admitted making the comments about bribing teens to attack her. But he said he was joking, and he refused to tell the teens he shouldn’t have said it, Lemoine said.
According to Lemoine, officials also made her sign a confidentiality agreement and threatened that she could end up in jail if she ever spoke of the incident. When she asked the administrator if any other action would be taken, “He stood up, pointed at me and said ‘Get the (expletive) out of here,’” she said.
The trial, which is expected to last several weeks, is the most public display yet of an unusual dynamic in which the state attorney general’s office has been simultaneously prosecuting perpetrators and defending the state against allegations raised in the civil case. In the Meehan case, the AG’s office argues that the state is not responsible for a small group of “rogue employees” and that Meehan waited too long to sue.
Under questioning by Assistant Attorney General Catherine Denny, Lemoine said she had not worked with any of the men whom Meehan accuses of abuse. She also was asked about incidents she described to Meehan’s lawyers but not to police who interviewed her in 2021; and why she didn’t report her concerns to police or state officials soon after leaving the facility in 1991.
“I felt like I had adequately reported it to someone whose job was to handle that,” she said.
Jurors also heard Wednesday from a former employee involved in creating training programs for youth center workers and occasionally investigating resident complaints. Wayne Eigabroadt testified that after he recommended that one worker be fired for using excessive force, the worker was instead promoted. Locked boxes set up to accept anonymous complaints were often tampered with, he said, and workers weren’t subtle about enforcing a code of silence by way of round stickers plastered all over campus.
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“It was a rat’s head with a red circle and a line through it, and it says ‘no rats,’” he said. “All the supervisors were wearing them.”
The federal government has activated the New Hampshire National Guard’s 157th Air Refueling Wing in connection with the war with Iran.
“I’ve had a briefing myself, a classified briefing, but it’s really important on the messaging on this that we really coordinate with the Pentagon,” Gov. Kelly Ayotte told reporters during a press briefing following Wednesday’s Executive Council meeting.
Ayotte said she was unable to share additional details about the nature of the New Hampshire National Guard’s activity related to the conflict, including how many guard members have been activated or what role they are playing.
“We’re going to respect what messaging comes out of the Pentagon just to make sure that our men and women in uniform are fully protected and that we aren’t providing any information that could be used in a way that would be harmful to them,” Ayotte said.
In a statement Thursday, Ayotte said the unit had been deployed in late February to the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility in support of the operation.
Earlier this week, Pentagon officials confirmed that members of the Vermont National Guard were involved in attacks against Iran over the weekend, though our news partners at Vermont Public were not able to confirm additional details on the nature of the operation.
During the briefing with local reporters, Ayotte also stressed her support for servicemembers and those close to them.
“I have such respect for our men and women in uniform,” Ayotte said. “As you know, I come from a military family, and they have our full support, and we appreciate them and their families, and obviously anyone who is serving right now, and my thoughts and prayers go out to those who have lost someone that they love.”
By PAULA TRACY, InDepthNH.org
CONCORD – While Republican Gov. Kelly Ayotte has said she opposes increasing highway toll rates across the state, the Senate voted Thursday to increase rates for out-of-state license plate holders.
It now goes to the House for consideration.
This would be a $1 increase for those who have out of state plates going through the tolls at Hooksett, Hampton and Bedford for out-of-state plates, a 75 cent hike for those taking Hampton’s Exit 2 and on the Spaulding turnpike at Rochester, and a 50 cent hike for those taking the exit off I-93 to Hooksett.
An analysis in the bill shows that this would increase toll revenue by $53.3 million in fiscal year 2027 and go up each year to generate $81.4 million a year in 2036.
Senate Bill 627 passed on a voice vote with two Republicans, Senators Regina Birdsell of Hampstead and William Gannon of Sandown opposing.
Senator Mark E. McConkey, R-Freedom, moved to take the bill off the table and offered an amendment.
He said the last time there was a systemwide increase to the turnpike toll was 19 years ago.
“I am sure we could all agree the cost of operations…has continued to escalate when revenue is not rising with it,” and he noted that with an enterprise fund, the state can only spend what it takes in.
The state has just completed a 10-year highway plan and there was a $400 million shortfall in projects that could not be paid for under the current income.
McConkey said the measure would not increase tolls for New Hampshire drivers with a state license plate.
“Why don’t we ask our neighbors,” to pay a toll increase. “We are getting the best of all worlds,” by passing the bill, he said, including “protecting our residents” and having resources for improvements to the turnpike system.
Sen. Gannon, R-Sandown, asked McConkey if there are any studies on impacts near the border on businesses.
If implemented, McConkey said the state will be the 27th lowest in per mile cost still. McConkey said the bill would also increase from seven to 14 days the amount of time for those with NH license plates to pay for a toll adding there are other states that also have different rates for out-of-state users.
The Hampton toll cost would go from $2 to $3, while Hooksett and Bedford would rise from $1 to $2 for out-of-state plates.
New Hampshire currently has the lowest rate per mile among states with tolls roads.
The governor said she does not support a toll increase.
“We are not going to put a burden on drivers for a toll increase,” Ayotte said. “Families are struggling.”
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