After an investigation by a Pennsylvania state auditor, Glen Mills School has been found to have violated state child abuse laws. If you or your child was subjected to abuse at Glen Mills School, you may be able to file a Glen Mills Schools lawsuit.

What is the Glen Mills School?

Located in Glenn Mills, Pennsylvania, Glen Mills School was the oldest remaining reform school in the U.S. and previously held a reputation for being an elite, effective method of reforming juvenile delinquents in an 800-acre expanse about 20 miles west of Philadelphia, in Delaware County. The school was meant to offer an excellent education and a chance to reform boys between the ages of 12 and 21. In 2018, Glen Mills housed 383 boys who had been ordered there by courts.

However, the Glen Mills School has recently been rocked with allegations of widespread child abuse and cover-ups dating back years. In February 2019, an investigation by the Philadelphia Inquirer found evidence of child abuse—including both physical and sexual—as well as a long history of cover-ups. The report noted that “serious violence is both an everyday occurrence and an open secret at Glen Mills, and has been for decades.”

Is Glen Mills School Still Open?

Some parents and guardians responded by immediately removing their children from the school. The state then ordered an “emergency removal” of any boys remaining at the school.

Just two weeks after the state-prompted emergency removal, the Department of Human Services revoked the school’s license, effectively shuttering it.

Leaders at Glen Mills said that they were “stunned” by this turn of events and claimed there was “no credible evidence” and planned to appeal the decision.

Why Did the School Shut Down?

The Inquirer’s report came after the arrests of two former Glen Mills counselors for assaulting a 17-year-old student in September 2018. Portions of the assault were witnessed by a group of about 25 students working on a group project, and school surveillance cameras caught the incident on tape.

During the assault, which occurred on July 19, 2018, the counselors choked, body-slammed, and punched the student in the head, according to Delaware County District Attorney Kat Copeland.

“As witnessed by about 30 people and recorded by several cameras, they literally beat the breath out of him,” Copeland told 6ABC.

The two counselors directly involved in the assault were terminated, and four others were suspended. In the immediate aftermath of the assault accusations, Philadelphia stopped sending children to the school—but that wasn’t the end of it.

The Inquirer began investigating, which in turn sparked investigations by the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services, the state Auditor General and Inspector General, and the Delaware County District Attorney’s Office.

Pennsylvania Auditor General Eugene DePasquale performed an audit in June 2020 and made a number of policy recommendations for the school. While DePasquale did not go so far as to recommend that the school reopen, he did say that the administration of Glen Mills followed through with the policy recommendation requests.

The campus was shut down after the Department of Human Services revoked all 14 of its Certificates of Compliance required to operate the school. The Department’s decision was in direct response to finding violations of child abuse laws.

DHS Deputy Secretary Cathy Utz sent a letter to Glen Mills assistant executive director Christopher Spriggs to notify the school of the closure. The letter cited “gross incompetence, negligence, and misconduct in operating the facilities,” as well as “mistreatment and abuse of children in care.”

The letter was a big step. In some cases of school abuse, the DHS might have chosen instead to offer a provisional license or request that the school provide a corrective action plan. In this case, however, since the nature of the abuse was so systemic and widespread, Utz told the Inquirer that full revocation was necessary.

“Children who are entrusted in Pennsylvania’s juvenile justice system have a right to be safe in their placements,” Utz said.

DHS Secretary Teresa Miller agreed with Utz’s assessment. “Institutions charged with caring for children have a responsibility to keep them safe. The Glen Mills Schools failed in this duty,” Miller said. “We now know that children living at Glen Mills were subjected to abuse and intimidation. My department is taking this action so no more children will be subjected to the culture of abuse, coercion, and silence that ran deep at the school, and so staff responsible may be held accountable.”

How Many Cases of Abuse Were Reported?

So far, hundreds of former students at the school have filed lawsuits against it alleging rape, physical abuse, and cover-ups. Claims of abuse that have so far been brought forward range widely, from broken bones to choking to sexual assault. Survivors have alleged abuse by teachers, counselors, and other staff at the Pennsylvania school.

Nearly 800 men and boys have begun pursuing individual and class action lawsuits over the abuse they allege occurred during their time at Glen Mills.

A group of former Glen Mills students filed suit just a few days after the school’s licenses were revoked, alleging they suffered “cruel and unusual punishment” and “subjected to extreme and sustained physical and psychological abuse,” along with being denied a proper education, according to NBC Philadelphia.

In one Glen Mills School lawsuit filed by four former students for at least $10 million, the plaintiffs allege that the abuse disproportionately affected Black students as well as those with special needs, according to NBC.

By January 2020, more than a dozen lawsuits comprising more than 300 former Glen Mills students had been filed against the institution, according to the Inquirer. Some lawsuits allege abuse as far back as the 1970s.

In September 2020, a former Glen Mills counselor admitted to assaulting a 17-year-old student at the school in 2018. The former counselor—Christopher Medina, now 33—entered open guilty pleas to charges of simple assault, recklessly endangering another person, and endangering the welfare of children. All of these charges are misdemeanors. Medina was given two years of probation.

A video of the assault shows Medina hitting the student in the back of the head three times, pulling him out of a chair, and body-slamming him to the ground, according to Common Pleas Court Judge Margaret Amoroso, who says she viewed this video as well as a letter from the victim’s mother.

The assault on the minor victim lasts for three minutes, Deputy District Attorney Douglas Rhodes notes, and the victim claims to have sustained soft tissue damage and mental trauma from the assault.

According to Rhodes, the standard sentences for these charges ranged from restorative sanctions to nine months in prison. Due to the position of trust and authority Medina had been in at the school, Rhodes reportedly requested a standard range of incarceration.

“It is quite clear that what happened here is a breach of that trust and a breach of the duty that Mr. Medina had as an employee of the Glen Mills School,” said Rhodes. “It’s quite possible that at times, that might be a difficult job, but it is a job that Mr. Medina signed up for and he is trained to handle those kids with that purpose in mind…of reforming and restoring.”

Medina is not the only Glen Mills counselor to be charged with abusing that particular student in the last couple of years. Patrick Jameson Raquet was also charged in the fall of 2018 with assaulting the same victim. However, he twice had charges against him dismissed at the Magisterial District Court level.

Did the Glen Mills School Cover Up the Abuse?

Before the evidence of widespread abuse surfaced, the Glen Mills, Pennsylvania reform school had enjoyed decades of praise for rehabilitating juvenile delinquents. The New York Times once even praised the school’s culture, which it said “encourages self-discipline and a sense of mutual respect and responsibility.”

However, the Inquirer investigation uncovered a plethora of evidence—including internal documents, court records, incident reports, and dozens of interviews with students, staff, and more—that indicated school officials both ignored abuse within its walls and failed to properly vet or train school counselors.

Moreover, the Inquirer found that when families tried to report abuses, school staff told them that if students complain, they’ll be transferred to a state-run facility “with boys who are mentally ill or have committed sex offenses.” Staff members also reportedly threatened boys with longer sentences, or even hid students in their rooms until physical evidence of abuse had healed enough to be concealed.

Glen Mills School Abuse Prompts Legislation

The Philadelphia Inquirer reports that a bill proposed by lawmakers after the Gen Mills School abuse scandal broke was recently passed by the U.S. House of Representatives.

According to the bill’s sponsors, the Justice for Juveniles Act will help minors in a correctional facility report abuse they have suffered. Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon (D-PA) introduced the bill in 2019, heralding it as a way to protect youth from abuse in prisons.

“Unfortunately, America’s prisons have been home to widespread abuse and mistreatment of youth. Young people, meant to be focused on rehabilitation in a safe environment, are often subjected to systemic harms such as physical and sexual violence, solitary confinement, pepper spray, and harmful restraints from other youth and facility staff,” states the Rep. Scanlon’s website.

The Justice for Juveniles Act works to right some wrongs in the Prison Litigation Reform Act (PLRA). The PLRA was passed in 1995 and touted as a way to reduce the number of “frivolous” lawsuits filed by inmates. Under the PLRA, claimants must demonstrate physical injuries have occurred before being allowed to file a lawsuit. Additionally, the PLRA limits the ability of claimants to retain legal representation.

Unfortunately, minors in correctional facilities are far more likely to experience physical and sexual abuse, especially when they are housed in adult prisons, say advocates. In addition, it is more difficult for youth to report abuse or file a lawsuit against their abuser or the system that allowed the abuse to occur. According to Rep. Scanlon, the Justice for Juveniles Act exempts minors from PLRA requirements when filing a lawsuit over alleged abuse.

Who Can File a Glen Mills School Lawsuit?

Hundreds of former students have come forward with allegations of sexual assault, rape, physical abuse, and cover-ups of that abuse at the old institution. Pennsylvania extended its statute of limitations on child sex abuse claims from age 30 to age 55 in November 2019.

If you are a former student of the Glen Mills School and were abused during your time there by a teacher, counselor, or another staff member, you may be able to file a Glen Mills School lawsuit.

Filing a Glen Mills School lawsuit cannot take away the pain and suffering caused by abuse, but it can at least help offer some financial compensation for your suffering, as well as hold those responsible accountable for their actions and inactions.

Filing a lawsuit can be a daunting prospect, so Top Class Actions has laid the groundwork by connecting you with an experienced attorney. Consulting an attorney can help you determine if you have a claim, navigate the complexities of litigation, and maximize your potential compensation.

This article is not legal advice. It is presented
for informational purposes only.