One week after lawsuits were filed against three western Pennsylvania youth centers for allegations of child sexual abuse, one of the alleged victims is sharing her story with 11 Investigates.
>> Lawsuits allege child sexual abuse of nearly 100 victims at local juvenile detention centers
A Westmoreland County woman we are identifying only by her first name, Sarah, is one of more than 90 men and women named as plaintiffs in the lawsuits filed against Abraxas Youth & Family Services, Summit Academy and George Junior Republic. The allegations raised by the plaintiffs range from inappropriate strip searches to rape.
Abraxas has several facilities in Pennsylvania.
Sarah says she was abused as a young teen at Abraxas’ South Mountain facility. Her alleged abuse was at the hands of a guard who she says started touching her inappropriately within the first two weeks she checked into the facility. She believes his rank was sergeant. Sarah says the abuse happened multiple times a week, despite her reporting the abuse to two adults.
“It was always in the canteen where we ate,” she recalled.
In an emotional hour-long interview, Sarah described what she endured at Abraxas and how it derailed the course of her life. It was the second time she had told her story in full. The first was last month when she reopened a painful chapter in her life, telling an attorney at Goldberg, Persky & White how she was allegedly violated repeatedly at an Abraxas facility.
She said she nearly lost all hope she would ever see justice for the abuse she and others allegedly suffered at the hands of guards and other staff at the facility.
“I thought I was going to be waiting forever,” Sarah said. “Last couple days has been a change. It has made that hope come back, because I saw you break the story that there’s actually the lawsuit. It was no longer an if or a maybe or a they didn’t believe me. It was a, ‘Oh my God, finally.”
Around 12 years old, Sarah said her father was physically and verbally abusing her. One day she called 911. That decision is one she has come to regret.
“I wish I would have never called the cops on my dad. I wish I never asked for help,” she said through tears.
Sarah was placed in foster care and cycled through several family homes and then at least one group home. She desperately wanted to go back to her family and the grandma who was helping raise her prior to her diagnosis and tough battle with cancer. Sarah said she started acting out while in foster care and eventually ended up at Abraxas’ South Mountain facility.
She said the first time the sergeant groped her, her body stiffened. She knew it was no accident. The unwanted touches continued and escalated to groping under her clothing, she said.
After one of the alleged assaults, Sarah recalled walking with her alleged abuser, head down. Another girl saw her and later said, “Oh, it’s you too.” Then Sarah says she knew she was not alone.
She said the two went together to a supervising guard and filled out a report, signing it with their names and the date. Sarah said she also reported the abuse to her case worker. But she says she was never interviewed and recalls seeing no signs of an investigation. She said the abuse continued, and her abuser repeatedly taunted her that she had no way to escape.
“The worst part about it all was just the feeling of being helpless. Like he was right, nobody was going to help me,” Sarah said.
The lawsuit mentions one occasion where the sergeant “forcefully pushed” Sarah against a wall. She said it was after she pushed him away. The lawsuit states the sergeant “began choking her with the arm held against her neck, saying ‘I know you want me.’”
“I thought I was gonna pass out, honest to God. I wish I would have,” she said.
Sarah said she knew there was one way she could get kicked out of the program. She orchestrated an attack on another girl, someone she hardly knew.
“I hate myself for that. She didn’t deserve that. But I knew it would get me kicked out,” she said. “I wasn’t gonna sit there and keep letting it happen.”
Sarah said reopening this chapter of her life has led to the most difficult week of her adult life. She’s conflicted about the lawsuit. She is happy her story, along with those of the other alleged victims, is being told. At the same time, she said the memories are painful and triggering.
She decided to share her story publicly to help juveniles who may be in the same situation now that she was almost 20 years ago.
“If somebody doesn’t speak up… it’s just going to keep happening,” she said. “It’ll make me rest a little easier, but it’s not going to take it away.
Sarah says justice, to her, looks like accountability – for the alleged abusers and the adults who stayed silent.
11 Investigates has reached out to Abraxas multiple times via phone and email. So far our requests for comment on this story have gone unanswered.
Attorney Jason Luckasevic at Goldberg, Persky & White believes there are many more people like Sarah, who have yet to come forward. The firm said they have received many calls from alleged victims after news broke of the lawsuits and expect to hear from more. If you want to reach out to the firm, you can email victims@gpwlaw.com.
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