CCHR Calls for Nationwide Ban, Citing History of Abuse and Fatalities in Troubled Teen Industry
By CCHR International
The Mental Health Industry Watchdog
January 31, 2025
- Kody Kinsley, North Carolina’s outgoing Secretary of Health and Human Services, advocates for a state ban on wilderness therapy camps after the 2024 death of a 12-year-old boy at Trails Carolina wilderness camp.
- A nationwide ban is needed following decades of abuse, neglect, and fatalities linked to wilderness camps.
- CCHR calls for a comprehensive reform of the troubled teen industry, including revoking licenses and ensuring stronger criminal penalties to protect vulnerable youth.
A top North Carolina health official is calling for a ban on wilderness therapy camps in the state following the tragic death of a 12-year-old boy at the now-closed Trails Carolina camp.[1] CCHR supports this action and urges the prohibition of such camps nationwide.
In his final weeks as North Carolina’s Secretary of Health and Human Services, Kody Kinsley spoke to local media, stating that he believes wilderness therapy camps should be permanently outlawed in the state. His remarks follow the February 2024 death of a child at Trails Carolina, a camp in the western part of the state, which the NC Department of Health has since closed. The boy suffocated after being zipped into a sleeping bag with a device that prevented him from opening it. An autopsy later ruled his death a homicide.[2]
“I don’t think wilderness therapy camps have a place in our continuum of care in North Carolina,” Kinsley said. “The law needs to be changed to permanently remove these licenses, so they don’t exist.” He expressed deep sympathy for the families affected by such tragedies, emphasizing the need to prevent other parents from experiencing similar heartbreak.
To implement this change, Kinsley emphasized that new legislation must be passed by the North Carolina General Assembly.[3] CCHR suggests this could potentially be achieved by amending NC Codes to explicitly exclude wilderness therapy camps from being licensed as residential child-care facilities. Similarly, amendments to Licensing Procedures could specify that facilities employing wilderness-based therapeutic models are not eligible for licensure under mental health or substance use disorder treatment provisions.[4] The organization has urged state lawmakers to take action by inquiring with the Department about how wilderness camps can be prohibited under the state’s health regulations.
Family Help & Wellness, the parent company of Trails Carolina, also owns Solstice East, a residential treatment center for girls located in Weaverville, NC. In 2023, the center underwent rebranding, changing its name to Magnolia Mill School.[5] This change came amid a series of allegations and legal challenges regarding the facility’s practices and treatment methods.
- Allegations (2020-2021):
o Medication Errors: Between March and October 2020, Solstice East staff made 115 medication errors, including administering drugs without proper medical authorization.[6]
o Restraints and Isolation: Staff reportedly threatened residents with physical restraint holds or isolation in a basement room for minor behavioral infractions.[7]
o Legal Action: North Carolina state authorities launched an investigation, leading to a $6,000 fine for violations of healthcare rules.[8]
- Lawsuit: In 2021, a former resident overdosed on prescription medication, which led to legal action by the family. Despite the overdose, the facility continued administering an excessive dosage of psychotropic drugs, resulting in erratic and irrational behavior from the 13-year-old resident.[9]
- Public and Legal Scrutiny: The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services has raised concerns over serious medication errors at Solstice East, contributing to increased scrutiny and legal challenges. Claims of emotional and psychological abuse have fueled public protests demanding greater accountability.[10]
In recent years, wilderness therapy camps have been widely scrutinized nationwide. A USA Today investigation in December 2022 revealed that many former participants described their experiences as negative and traumatizing, with some noting that these camps often serve as a gateway to longer-term residential treatment centers.[11] CCHR, which has been exposing abuse in these camps since the early 1990s, cites reports of deaths, mistreatment, and deceptive practices that have gone largely unregulated.[12] In 1995 there were almost 400 wilderness camps in the U.S. that were barely regulated.[13]
A 2008 report by the U.S. Government Accountability Office documented abuse and deaths across these facilities, and more recent findings by Breaking Code Silence estimate that 150,000 to 200,000 children are enrolled in over 2,000 such programs nationwide, which includes 40 wilderness camps.[14] In Utah, the number of actual wilderness camps dropped 64% from 14 in 2014 to just five in 2023.[15]
A 2004 Chicago Tribune investigation of Wilderness or “boot” camps cited 31 juvenile deaths over the previous 11 years.[16] Under increased scrutiny, nationally, deaths in these facilities decreased by 81%, from 142 in the 2000s to 27 in the 2020s.[17]
Despite a decline in the number of wilderness camps due to increased scrutiny, wilderness therapy camps are still a risk to vulnerable youth and could be prohibited.
CCHR is calling for a comprehensive overhaul of the troubled teen industry, part of which will be addressed by the recently passed federal Stop Institutional Child Abuse Act, which establishes a study to ultimately help prevent child abuse in youth residential programs. However, as the study may take several years, regulations are needed now to impose robust penalties on facilities found abusing children and youths, including stronger regulations to revoke facility licenses, the loss of contracts with Medicaid, Medicare, and other insurance providers at the first indication of abuse or death, and criminal penalties for violations of vulnerable youth.
CCHR’s campaign aims to ensure the safety and well-being of children across the U.S. by also eliminating wilderness therapy camps.
References:
[1] “Top regulator calls for ban on wilderness camps in North Carolina 2 children died in 1 decade at North Carolina camp,” WBTV 3 News, 14 Jan 2025, https://www.wbtv.com/2025/01/14/top-regulator-calls-ban-wilderness-camps-north-carolina/
[2] “Top regulator calls for ban on wilderness camps in North Carolina…,” WBTV 3 News, 14 Jan 2025
[3] “Top regulator calls for ban on wilderness camps in North Carolina…,” WBTV 3 News, 14 Jan 2025
[4] Article 2, Licensure of Facilities for Individuals With Mental Health Disorders, Developmental Disabilities, and Substance Use Disorders, https://www.ncleg.net/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/HTML/ByArticle/Chapter_122C/Article_2.html; North Carolina Administrative Code, Title 10A – Health and Human Services, Chapter 27 – Mental Health, Community Facilities and Services, Subchapter G – Rules for Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities, and Substance Abuse Facilities and Services, Section .0400 – Licensing Procedures, https://regulations.justia.com/states/north-carolina/title-10a/chapter-27/subchapter-g/section-0400/
[5] https://programsfortroubledteens.com/directory/solstice-east/; https://www.linkedin.com/company/magnolia-mill-school; https://www.allkindsoftherapy.com/programs/program/magnolia-mill-school
[6] “‘You’d hear girls screaming, crying.’ Former clients, state allege abuses at Solstice East,” Citizen Times, 4 Mar. 2021, https://www.citizen-times.com/story/news/2021/03/04/solstice-east-teen-abuse-allegations-arise-state-former-clients/6868303002/
[8] https://programsfortroubledteens.com/directory/solstice-east/
[10] https://www.judicialselection.com/solstice-east-lawsuit/
[11] Sara M Moniuszko, “Wilderness therapy was supposed to help these ‘troubled teens.’ It traumatized them instead,” USA Today, 8 Dec. 2022,
https://www.usatoday.com/in-depth/life/health-wellness/2022/12/08/wilderness-therapy-troubled-teen-industry/9890694002/
[12] “Utah wilderness therapy deaths,” Salt Lake Tribune, 11 Oct. 2007,
https://archive.sltrib.com/story.php?ref=/news/ci_7139316
[13] “Taking Nature’s Cure,” U.S. News and World Report, June 26, 1995
[14] Sara M Moniuszko, “Wilderness therapy was supposed to help these ‘troubled teens.’ …,” USA Today, 8 Dec. 2022
[15] Jessica Miller, “Nearly half of Utah’s wilderness programs for ‘troubled teens’ closed in the last year. Here’s what’s happening,” Salt Lake City Tribune, 7 May 2024, https://www.sltrib.com/news/2024/05/07/nearly-half-utahs-wilderness/
[16] “Therapeutic education industry booms as parents seek programs for their troubled children,” Chicago Tribune, January 14, 2004; List of Candace Takeuchi, as found on website www.teenliberty.org, accessed 21 Sept. 2004; “Tough love proves too tough,” High Country News, June 10, 1996
[17] Sam Myers, “Dark Forest: A Look Inside Controversial Wilderness Therapy Camps,” Sierra Nevada Ally, 2 Aug. 2023, https://sierranevadaally.org/2023/08/02/dark-forest-a-look-inside-controversial-wilderness-therapy-camps/
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