This story was originally written on a webpage created to provide statements for a GAO hearing in 2007. The address is cafety.youthrights.org and it waits for your statement if you believe that your stay at a boarding school included unfair treatment or even abuse. All rights and credits goes to the author Brendan McMahon, who posted the original story on cafety.youthrights.org
At age 17, sent to Yellow Stone Boys and Girls Ranch, in Laurel Montana, Just outside Billings Montana.
Experiences there included daily sessions with adult counselors, in which I would be asked a series of questions about life, friends, goals, and even religion, and then the counselor, always male, would tell me any number of negative things about the goals, such as that I should develop healthier friendships, that my friends don't really care about me, that if I was a good Christian that I wouldn't be there, that my interest in religion was perverted, that I tried to supplant faith with my own values, and a wide number of other similar statements, that had no prompting from me.
On 4 occasions was restricted from attending meals as a form of disciplinary punishment, twice for inadequate participation in therapy, once in bible study, with one of the restrictions spanning an entire days meals. Was sent out to Deaconess Hospital's Emergency room in Billings, Montana with malnutrition and dehydration. Was given a wrist iv with 2 bags of saline, and later that evening returned to the Ranch.
Was told that I needed some pride and ego down, and later that week, was told by a counselor at the McVeigh lodge house, Terry, "You must think you're a real tough guy, yeah... that's it I bet, a tough guy, well come over here, I'll show you tough.' and I shook my head in disagreement, and backed up. He then grabbed me by my collar, kicked my leg from behind with his right foot, and i found myself back to the floor a few moments later. He then started saying 'not so tough now I bet, are you, what you going to say now, yeah, you know better.' After a few more minutes of that, he asked 'So are you ready to apologize; Cause I'll be here as long as it takes. ' I asked what did I do? He said 'Oh you know what you did, you just love to be a troublemaker everyone knows that.' I stayed still on the ground and closed my eyes while he bent down and started to shout in my face about how my parents didn't want me, and how its always the same, bad kids and then he always has to deal with it, then to say that it was ok, because he knew his job.'
I remember so vividly the way his breath stunk, and how I felt like every part of my back and shoulders was in pain. After about an hour or so he left to do a shift change, then came back and had me go back to my room, I fell asleep and don't remember anything else until that evening.
I had head to toe bruises for 3 weeks after that, even to the point of the nurse at the camp, writing into my report that I was bruised from head to toe. I told the staff at the ranch what had happened, and they told me that I was ' drawing too much negative enjoyment out of the incident'. The counselor Terry, an African American, who told stories of involvement as a volunteer fireman, and of getting up every morning at 4 am to swim laps at the YMCA, still works at the camp as of May 2007.
I had reported it to a Mr Hammer, who was a tall blond man with a beard, a Mr McVay, who was a shorter hobbyist weight-lifter/bodybuilder with a brown hair and moustache. To the nurse who did the health inspection. Also to a Mr Shreve, a short man who worked part time at a vinyl goods shop, such as for bags, carrying cases, and the like. Mr. Shreve also stated that he was a former U.S. Navy Seal.
After getting out, I later spoke with the Sherrif's office in Laurel, Montana; and was told at their front window that no such complaint of abuse was ever reported to their office from the ranch, and that after that much time, that they wouldn't bother investigating it.
I was subsequently left with Terry as my counselor for many of the next few weeks.
After the incident I began to have serious doubts about remaining there safely, and I gave a written letter to the head counselor for the 'McVeigh Lodge' one 'Mrs Mirch' that 'I no longer wished to remain here voluntarily.' She responded by calling me into her office, and declaring that my Parents had retained an attorney, in order to keep me there by force.
I later learned that my parents denied any such action, and that Mrs Mirch had never taken the appropriate steps to maintain my stay involuntarily.
I began to be as resistant as I could to any activity, willingly earning myself time in Isolation. To the point that I would be in there for more than 20 hours a day. The Counselors on several occasions called the ranch nurse over, to suggest giving me a sedative for being uncooperative, at one point his reply was that ' I can't give him drugs if he's just lying there. ' From that point forward I was spending almost the entire day, in isolation. When we were required to attend what they called a 'school.' I was then just walked over with the rest of the kids, then tossed into the isolation area there. Until one day, one of the staff, instructed me that if I continued to waste their time, that they were going to make me more uncomfortable. They then went and got a logbook, and came back and told me that I had to strip down, because it was a safety violation to let me where clothes with buttons, while in there.
After having done so, they took the clothes and put them on a chair next to theirs, and then left the door wide open to the isolation cell. Then leaving me in full view of anyone passing by the hallway, and remained that way during the next bell, at which time all the students had lined up, including about 7 of them in view , on either side of the adjacent hallway.
That evening I was subjected to hearing numerous comments about my weight, my body, and a few sexually inappropriate comments by the others at the all male lodge. All in supervised group 'rap ' sessions.
After a few weeks of this, I had a different counselor during the day, and they alleviated that routine, instead telling me that they didn't mind sitting there all day, since they still got paid the same. This lasted for most of the remainder of my stay, with me immutably opposed to remaining there, and with the staff restricting me from any contact with the outside world, be it family, a public attorney or friends.
Among some of the other noteable moments of the stay, was meeting Steven Curtis Chapmann, a musician, and his wife, and his statement, ' Well, I sure hope you do whatever is required to earn your way out of here.' As well as his wife telling a story about how they called up all their relatives to ensure that they weren't related before getting married, given that her maiden name was also Chapmann. Also another noteable moment, was when we were told that the lodges were actually assigned based on 'problem areas' to include such distinctions as ' drug use, sexual misconduct, skin color, problems in the family setting ( disobedience,runaways, etcetera.), and legal issues (crime.)
I had ended up in the lodge for people with ' problems in the family setting.'
In summary, the chief abuses I experienced, were that of physical abuse, sexual embarrassments and exposure, abuse of my rights in not permitting any legal recourse to residing there, and emotional abuse in the form of repeated browbeatings, negative feedback about my goals and religious beliefs, a great deal of isolation, and the physical and psychological affects of being denied food, while residing in a locked room.
Ever since this I've had repeated crisis of faith, and have had numerous shortfalls in terms of self confidence and diminished relations with others. I've also considered the value of suicide on more than one occasion, though never attempted it.
Submitted on January 2nd, 2009, I hereby certify under penalty of perjury, that the above is true and correct.
Andrew Hill
References:
Datasheet about the boarding school at Fornits Home for Wayward Web Fora
The original statement on cafety.youthrights.com
