A woman who endured sexual abuse as a child inside a Pennsylvania detention center is now speaking out, nearly ten years after her traumatic experiences. Her story is part of a growing number of allegations about sexual abuse in juvenile detention centers across the state, with over 200 lawsuits filed against state-run and private facilities.
The woman, who has chosen to remain anonymous, describes in an interview with CBS affiliate 21 News from earlier this week a childhood of instability, moving from foster home to foster home until the age of 12. After attempting to take her own life, she found herself placed in juvenile detention centers because, as she explained, she had nowhere else to go.
“I had been in one institution, and they said that they didn’t want me anymore,” she recalled. “So, I had to go to a new one because no other foster homes wanted me either.”
By the time she was 15, she had been sent to the North Central Secure Treatment Center, a state-run facility overseen by Pennsylvania’s Department of Human Services (DHS). It was there, she said, that she suffered sexual abuse at the hands of her therapist.
A Trusted Role Betrayed
For over a year, the woman attended therapy sessions one to two times a week with a therapist assigned to her at the North Central facility. Initially, she believed she was in a relationship with him.
“We would do things in our therapy sessions, and it came to a point that I realized he didn’t look at me the same way,” she said.
Her realization left her confused and afraid. She explained that she didn’t report the sexual abuse because she doubted anyone would believe her. The impact of that betrayal still haunts her today.
“I know I still need therapy, but I’m scared of therapists,” she said. “Like, how do I go get therapy when my therapist sexually abused me?”
Seeking Accountability
Now an adult, she has joined more than 200 others in lawsuits alleging abuse at juvenile detention centers across Pennsylvania. While not all the alleged cases occurred in state-run facilities, hers did, and she believes the state bears responsibility for failing to protect her.
“The state could have actually looked into everyone’s claims of sexual abuse and not just taken the staff’s word for it,” she said. “They need to do a better job of who they’re hiring. They need to do mental evaluations on people.”
Her hope is that the state acknowledges its failure to safeguard children in its care.
“An acknowledgment would be better than anything,” she explained. “That yes, we did wrong. We didn’t do our job good enough to protect these kids.”
A Broader Pattern of Abuse
This woman’s account is part of three rounds of lawsuits filed against detention facilities across Pennsylvania, including those run by DHS.
Her courage in speaking out serves as a call to action for systemic reform, ensuring that no child endures the same suffering. Her voice joins many others seeking justice, safety, and recognition of the profound harm caused by these failures.
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