CCHR testifies before hearing of Maryland law seeking to end potentially lethal restraint methods used in youth transports to psychiatric treatment facilities.
By Jan Eastgate
President CCHR International
February 14, 2025
- Protecting Vulnerable Youth: The Citizens Commission on Human Rights International supports Maryland bill, which aims to protect against the abusive practice of “gooning”—forcibly transporting children, youths and vulnerable adults to psychiatric treatment centers, often using harmful restraints.
- The bill prohibits practices such as blindfolding, life-threatening restraints, and nighttime extractions while allowing individuals and the Attorney General to take legal action against violators.
- History of Abuse and Neglect: Multiple behavioral health facilities, including Mingus Mountain Academy, Johnstown Heights Behavioral Health and Thompson’s Residential Treatment Center, have faced serious allegations of patient abuse, neglect, and poor conditions, with investigative reports revealing prolonged patient stays for financial gain, physical and sexual assaults, and inadequate care.
- Lack of Accountability: Despite years of documented deficiencies, including multiple violations and deaths, these facilities have repeatedly evaded meaningful accountability, with state inspections failing to address ongoing issues, and in some cases, facilities continuing to operate under new names or ownership.
A new bill introduced in Maryland seeks to bring long-overdue accountability to the youth transport industry, which has been accused of using abusive and inhumane tactics to forcibly transfer children and vulnerable adults to psychiatric and behavioral treatment facilities. The Preventing Abduction in Youth Transport Act (HB 497), introduced by Delegate Vaughn Stewart aims to outlaw certain restraint practices and establish legal safeguards for those subjected to these transfers.[1]
CCHR International and the U.S. National CCHR office presented written and oral testimony in support of the bill to the Maryland House Judiciary Committee on February 13, 2025, highlighting the severe risks associated with unregulated youth transport services. Known as “gooning,” these operations involve the forced removal of minors from their homes—often at night—using physical and chemical restraints. Once transported, many are delivered to treatment facilities that have been exposed for neglect, abuse, and even fatalities.[2]
Delegate Stewart had partnered with Paris Hilton and the advocacy wing of 11:11 to introduce this legislation, and Ms. Hilton also testified before the Maryland Judiciary Committee hearing, recounting her own abduction at age 16 by transporters who restrained her, refused to answer her questions, and delivered her to an abusive facility.[3]
HB 497: Key Provisions and Protections
HB 497 proposes several key reforms to curb abuses in youth transport, including:
- Prohibiting the use of blindfolds, hoods, and other physical restraints.
- Banning nighttime removals between 9 p.m. and 6 a.m. to reduce traumatic experiences.
- Establishing legal accountability, allowing individuals and the Attorney General to pursue civil action against violating transport companies.[4]
In the 1990s, CCHR exposed the disturbing practice of children and teens being kidnapped and taken to psychiatric facilities. One of the most compelling cases occurred in 1991 when 14-year-old Jeremy Harrel was abducted from his parents’ home in Texas—without their consent—by two imposing men and transported to a psychiatric hospital owned by the now-defunct National Medical Enterprises (NME). A psychiatrist had filed for the boy’s detention and forced treatment based on an unsubstantiated and false claim made by Jeremy’s 12-year-old brother, who alleged that Jeremy was a substance abuser. It took the intervention of a Texas state legislator to secure Jeremy’s release, which garnered national attention. NME had been offering up to $2,000 in referral or “bounty hunter” fees for sending patients to its psychiatric facilities. As a result, due to CCHR’s efforts, laws were eventually passed, primarily in Texas, to outlaw psychiatric hospital bounty-hunting.[5]
The Dangers of Unregulated Youth Transport
The Regulatory Review has documented how desperate parents, often acting on misleading marketing, hire private transport companies to stage abduction-style removals of their children or troubled teens. These extractions can involve violent restraint, blindfolding, and forced sedation before the youth are flown or driven to remote residential treatment facilities (RTFs). Once admitted, these facilities have been linked to physical abuse, forced medication, and prolonged solitary confinement.[6]
A tragic example of the dangers of unregulated transport occurred in February 2024, when a 12-year-old boy was transported from New York to the Trails Carolina wilderness camp in North Carolina. The child was subjected to a fatal restraint procedure. This camp was operated by Family Help and Wellness, which partners with Bluefire Wilderness, another residential wilderness therapy facility that provides out-of-state treatment for Maryland families.[7] CCHR is concerned that this may use the unregulated transport system.
This initiative aligns with efforts in other states, such as Oregon and Illinois, which have already restricted chemical, mechanical, and other forms of restraint in child-care agencies and transport services.[8] HB 497 aims to build upon these protections by holding transport providers accountable for abusive practices.
Illinois took action in 2022 to ensure that youth would not be subjected to any form of restraint during transportation services provided or organized by the Department of Children and Family Services. Their definition of restraints includes manual, mechanical and chemical restraints. The latter relates to the use of “medications that restrict a youth’s freedom during a behavioral crisis or emergency, and is not a part of the youth’s standard treatment….”[9]
In February 2025, the U.S. Centers for Medicaid and Medicare (CMS) announced major changes in the long-term care surveyor guidance for nursing homes and their compliance to restraint regulations. Although relating to nursing, it could be expanded to the transporting of youths to residential treatment centers. CMS defines “chemical restraint” as any drug that is used for discipline or staff convenience and is not required to treat medical symptoms. It categorizes “unnecessary use of psychotropics” to specify a “resident’s right to be free from chemical restraints.” “Convenience” is considered any action that alters a resident’s behavior to the point where less care is needed, without serving the best interests of the resident.[10]
Chemical restraints are an unacceptable practice and should not be overlooked in legislation as important as HB 497. CCHR, through a Maryland resident, mother and grandmother, called for chemical restraints to be added to HB 497.
“Kidnapping” Transport Companies
Transport companies typically charge fees ranging from $2000 to $4000. Parents may incur a case management consultant fee that could cost up to $10,000, while some wilderness therapy camps charge an upfront admissions fee ranging from $1500 to $5000. Some financial institutions offer loans for these services, with amounts reaching as high as $100,000, preying on the desperation of distraught parents.
State government departments contract with these companies, while having no regulations overseeing their practices.
The American University Washington College of Law reported: “Most state laws make no mention of this industry at all. Thus, there are no legal requirements regarding personnel or procedures through which companies take, maintain, or transfer custody of a child. Not surprisingly, there are many documented—and who knows how many undocumented—examples of physical and emotional injury occurring during these transactions.”[11]
A 17-year-old transported to a wilderness camp in Lake Toxaway, North Carolina, was held in the facility for 77 days. “At the time, my parents felt it would be beneficial to my mental health to get out of the school system for a break,” she said. Many of the people with whom she attended the camp told her that they had been “gooned”—taken from their homes and transported to the camp by strangers. Once admitted, “We were yelled at and mocked for being upset,” she said and described conditions as “absolutely criminal.”[12]
The American Criminal Law Review exposed this criminal practice more than a decade ago. “After suffering the emotional trauma of being taken from their parents, children may suffer physical abuse as well, as the companies often use force in the form of handcuffs and other restraints.”[13]
The National Youth Rights Association (NYRA) estimates the industry profits $1.2 billion a year from a process that “dehumanizes youth and quite literally deprives them of freedom.”[14]
Pattern of Abuse in Behavioral Treatment Centers
The trauma endured during forced transport is often compounded by the treatment received at behavioral health and psychiatric facilities. Numerous reports have documented widespread abuse, neglect, and sexual misconduct in these institutions.
A recent lawsuit was filed against Mingus Mountain Academy, an Arizona-based facility for troubled teenage girls, alleging systemic sexual abuse by staff over more than a decade. According to court documents, 13 women reported being sexually assaulted or raped by staff members, with complaints ignored or dismissed by facility leadership. Mingus, owned by Vivant Healthcare (formerly Sequel Youth and Family Services), has been the subject of numerous state investigations, with 517 calls for service recorded since 2004, including reports of sexual offenses, assault, suicide attempts, and deaths.[15]
In July 2024 and again in January this year, CCHR brought the problems of Mingus to the attention of Arizona legislators, the state Attorney General, director of Health and Human Services, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, calling for Mingus to be shut down.
In January 2025, Mingus Mountain Academy was further exposed for the harrowing allegations of abuse, when former resident Elinore Hilborn described her experience at the facility as feeling “trapped” and unsafe. Sent there at age 17, Elinore alleges that staff engaged in inappropriate behavior and excessive physical restraint. Their account is part of a broader investigation revealing Mingus Mountain’s troubling history, including over 40 state citations for violations such as unlicensed clinical leadership, negligence during a suicide attempt, and staff assaulting patients. The facility was named in a U.S. Senate report, “Warehouses of Neglect,” which exposed systemic abuse across Vivant’s operations. The report highlights abusive conditions in what members of Congress describe as a profit-hungry industry where “children suffer routine harm.” ABC15 reports 13 alleged victims plan filed a lawsuit against the facility. The lawsuit describes what happened to them as “unspeakable horrors,” “horrific sexual abuse,” and the facility as “a venue for employee-abusers.”[16]
Vivant’s troubled history extends beyond Arizona. The company was widely condemned following the 2020 death of 16-year-old Cornelius Frederick, an African American foster child who was fatally restrained at a Michigan facility after throwing a sandwich. At the time, the company was known as Sequel Youth and Family Services, later rebranding as Vivant. Cornelius’ death was ruled a homicide, and three staff members were prosecuted. Vivant’s facilities have been linked to multiple abuse scandals and closures across the country.[17]
For-Profit Facilities Under Scrutiny
Beyond individual cases of abuse, the for-profit behavioral health industry has faced increasing scrutiny for prioritizing profits over patient safety. Companies like Acadia Healthcare, which owns three substance abuse treatment centers in Maryland, are under federal investigation for allegations of patient neglect and financial misconduct.[18] The New York Times has reported on patient mistreatment at Acadia facilities nationwide, reinforcing concerns about systemic failings in the industry.[19]
The series of closures and scandals surrounding behavioral health facilities highlights a disturbing trend of neglect, abuse, and systemic failures within the mental health care industry.
Concerns have been raised about Embark Behavioral Health, which operates two facilities in Maryland. Embark recently shut down three wilderness camps in Arizona, Oregon, and Wisconsin following backlash over treatment practices.[20]
Johnstown Heights Behavioral Health in Larimer County, Colorado, is set to close permanently on March 31, 2025, after years of investigative reports exposing severe abuse and neglect. Initially known as Clear View Behavioral Health, the facility was shut down by the state in 2020 due to allegations of poor patient care but was allowed to reopen under a new name in 2021. Investigative reports from Denver7 revealed that, despite the rebranding, the same issues persisted: prolonged patient stays for financial gain, filthy conditions, and physical and sexual assaults.[21] The facility’s history of abuse was exposed by CCHR on its website when it was still owned by Strategic Behavioral Health. The 2022 death of patient Christopher Dickson, who had been admitted to the detox unit, further fueled the scrutiny, yet hospital leadership continued to evade accountability. The official reason for the closure was shifting market dynamics, but the facility’s abusive history undeniably played a significant role.[22]
Similarly, Thompson’s Residential Treatment Center in Greenville, Texas, is under investigation following the tragic death of an 11-year-old foster child in November 2024. The child, who had complained of severe stomach pain and had suffered a head injury days before, died during a movie outing. Despite a history of 84 deficiencies over five years, including 12 classified as severe, state inspectors found no issues during a visit the day before the boy’s death. The state has closed the residential treatment facility three months after the boy’s death. This case has sparked renewed criticism of Texas’ foster care system, which, despite multiple court orders to improve safety, continues to place children in dangerous and abusive mental health facilities.[23]
In 2021, Oglethorpe Inc. was accused of knowingly submitting false claims for unnecessary inpatient psychiatric hospitalizations and misleading patients into voluntary admissions in three of its facilities in Ohio (Cambridge Behavioral Hospital, Ridgeview Behavioral Hospital, and The Woods at Parkside). The company paid a fine of $10.25 million. The company entered into a corporate integrity agreement (CIA) with the Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG) agreeing to retain an Independent Review Organization to review its claims to Medicare and Medicaid for five years.[24] In March 2024, another of its Ohio facilities, Georgetown Behavioral Hospital closed suddenly.[25]
Finally, LifeStance Health, an outpatient mental health provider, closed 82 clinic locations in 2023 after multiple investigations revealed serious concerns. The company, which claims to be one of the nation’s largest mental health platforms, faced numerous complaints uncovered through Freedom of Information Act requests. Allegations of overbilling, fraudulent billing, and unfair business practices have raised alarm over the industry’s ethical practices and ability to safeguard patients’ interests.[26]
These cases underscore the growing need for legislative action and oversight in the behavioral health sector to ensure facilities are held accountable. Without proper regulation and accountability, patients will continue to suffer, and these disturbing trends will persist.
Call for Legislative Action
Advocates argue that legislative action like HB 497 is essential to protecting vulnerable individuals from restraint abuse in the behavioral transport industry. CCHR International has called for broader reforms to ensure accountability in youth transport and residential treatment centers, urging lawmakers to impose stricter regulations and oversight.
HB 497 represents a crucial step in ending abusive transport practices and providing legal recourse for victims. With growing bipartisan concern over the treatment of youth in behavioral health settings, Maryland’s push for reform could set a national precedent for safeguarding the rights of those subjected to these controversial practices.
References:
[1] https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/hb0497?ys=2025RS
[2] https://www.cchrint.org/2024/07/12/abducting-troubled-teens-to-psychiatric-facilities/
[3] Amanda Engel, “Paris Hilton testifies in Maryland General Assembly Committee,” WMAR ABC 2, 13 Feb. 2025, https://www.wmar2news.com/local/paris-hilton-testifies-in-maryland-general-assembly-committee
[4] https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/hb0497?ys=2025RS
[5] https://www.cchrint.org/2017/07/26/bring-criminal-psychiatrists-under-law/
[6] https://www.cchrint.org/2024/07/12/abducting-troubled-teens-to-psychiatric-facilities/; Evelyn Tsisin, “The Troubled Teen Industry’s Troubling Lack of Oversight,” The Regulatory Review, 27 June 2023, https://www.theregreview.org/2023/06/27/tsisin-the-troubled-teen-industrys-troubling-lack-of-oversight/; Jim Salter, “Rules sought for ‘gooning,’ taking troubled kids to care,” The Hill, 27 Sept 2022, https://thehill.com/homenews/ap/ap-u-s-news/ap-rules-sought-for-gooning-taking-troubled-kids-to-care/
[7] https://bluefirewilderness.com/b/wilderness-therapy/maryland/
[8] https://olis.oregonlegislature.gov/liz/2021R1/Downloads/MeasureDocument/SB710
[9] ILLINOIS ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURES #32 YOUTH TRANSPORTATION, January 20, 2022 – PT 2022.01, Department of Children and Family Services Illinois, https://dcfs.illinois.gov/content/dam/soi/en/web/dcfs/documents/about-us/policy-rules-and-forms/documents/administrative-procedure/administrative-procedure-32-youth-transportation.pdf
[10] “New CMS Guidance: Prevent Unnecessary Psychotropic Medications,” 6 Jan. 2025, https://guidestareldercare.com/blog/new-cms-guidance-prevent-unnecessary-psychotropic-medications
[11] “Kidnapping Incorporated: The Unregulated Youth-Transportation Industry and the Potential for Abuse,” American University Washington College of Law Research Paper, 2014-32, page 572, paragraph 2, https://digitalcommons.wcl.american.edu/facsch_lawrev/432/
[12] Emily Mikkelsen, “Former Trails Carolina camper recounts stay at embattled ‘wilderness therapy’ camp; ‘I have nightmares that I’m still there.’” Fox News Greensboro, NC (WGHP), 4 July 2024, https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/former-trails-carolina-camper-recounts-stay-at-embattled-wilderness-therapy-camp-i-have-nightmares-that-i-m-still-there/ar-BB1pmOWk
[13] Abstract, “Kidnapping Incorporated: The Unregulated Youth-Transportation Industry and the Potential for Abuse,” American Criminal Law Review, Vol. 51., No. 3, 2014, https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2449298
[14] “The ‘troubled teen’ industry,” National Youth Rights Association, https://www.youthrights.org/issues/medical-autonomy/the-troubled-teen-industry/; Elizabeth Chuck and Tyler Kingkade, “Death of 12-year-old at North Carolina camp for troubled youth ruled a homicide,” NBC News, 24 June 2024, https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/death-12-year-old-nc-wilderness-camp-ruled-homicide-rcna158691
[15] “Lawsuit alleges ‘horrific sexual abuse’ at Arizona facility for troubled teens: 13 alleged victims claim sexual assault or abuse by staff at Mingus Mountain Academy,” ABC 15 News, 7 Feb. 2025,
https://www.abc15.com/news/local-news/investigations/lawsuit-alleges-horrific-sexual-abuse-at-arizona-facility-for-troubled-teens
[16] “‘I just felt trapped’ | Allegations of abuse at Arizona facility for troubled teens,” ABC 15 News,13 Jan. 2025, https://www.abc15.com/news/local-news/investigations/i-just-felt-trapped-allegations-of-abuse-at-arizona-facility-for-troubled-teens; “Lawsuit alleges ‘horrific sexual abuse’ at Arizona facility for troubled teens,” ABC 15 News, 7 Feb. 2025, https://www.abc15.com/news/local-news/investigations/lawsuit-alleges-horrific-sexual-abuse-at-arizona-facility-for-troubled-teens
[17] https://www.cchrint.org/2024/04/05/cchr-praises-state-governments-acting-to-curb-restraint-use-in-psych-facilities/: https://www.cchrint.org/2024/02/09/cchr-demands-stronger-accountability-in-troubled-teen-behavioral-industry/; “Counselors get probation for role in teen’s death at a now-closed Michigan youth home,” AP News, 19 Dec. 2023, https://apnews.com/article/former-counselors-probation-involuntary-manslaughter-teen-death-02fbfb801f0dbee0db5d1a47f06808e3; https://www.clickondetroit.com/news/michigan/2020/06/24/lawsuit-teen-screamed-i-cant-breathe-during-restraint-at-michigan-youth-facility/; https://www.apmreports.org/story/2022/04/26/sequel-closes-sells-youth-treatment-centers
[18] “Fraud and Fakery at the Country’s Largest Chain of Methadone Clinics: Acadia Healthcare falsifies records at its methadone clinics and enrolls patients who aren’t addicted to opioids, a Times investigation found,” The New York Times, 8 Dec. 2024, https://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/07/health/acadia-methadone-clinics-fraud.html
[19] Jessica Silver-Greenberg, Katie Thomas, “Acadia Healthcare Says It Faces New Federal Investigations: Shares of the company, one of the largest chains of for-profit psychiatric hospitals, were down 25 percent at one point,” The New York Times, 27 Sept. 2024, https://www.nytimes.com/2024/09/27/business/acadia-federal-investigations.html
[20] “Wilderness Therapy Industry’s Decline Accelerated by Embark Behavioral Health’s Exit,” Behavioral Health Business, 23 Feb. 2024, https://bhbusiness.com/2024/02/23/wilderness-therapy-industrys-decline-accelerated-by-embark-behavioral-healths-exit/; https://storiesfromthefield.libsyn.com/228-embarks-closure-of-new-visions-and-the-future-of-wilderness-therapy
[21] “Johnstown Heights Behavioral Health — subject of multiple Denver7 Investigates reports — will close in March,” Denver 7 News, 7 Feb. 2025,
https://www.denver7.com/news/investigations/johnstown-heights-behavioral-health-subject-of-multiple-denver7-investigates-reports-will-close-in-march
[22] “Johnstown Heights Behavioral Health — subject of multiple Denver7 Investigates reports — will close in March,” Denver 7 News, 7 Feb. 2025,
https://www.denver7.com/news/investigations/johnstown-heights-behavioral-health-subject-of-multiple-denver7-investigates-reports-will-close-in-march
[23] “Foster child death linked to state-contracted home prompts criminal investigation,” KWTX, 7 Feb. 2025, https://www.kwtx.com/2025/02/07/foster-child-death-linked-state-contracted-home-prompts-criminal-investigation/
[24] “Ohio Treatment Facilities and Corporate Parent Agree to Pay $10.25 Million to Resolve False Claims Act Allegations of Kickbacks to Patients and Unnecessary Admissions,” U.S. Department of Justice, 5 Mar. 2021, https://www.justice.gov/archives/opa/pr/ohio-treatment-facilities-and-corporate-parent-agree-pay-1025-million-resolve-false-claims
[26] https://thebearcave.substack.com/p/problems-at-lifestance-health-lfst
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