Free Republic

At 2 a.m., teenagers are woken up to strangers in their bedrooms. Then, they’re driven hours away, often to the midwest. What awaits them is abuse, hard physical labor and sadness– all paid for by their parents. This is the story of many children in the troubled teen industry. The troubled teen industry is a name coined by survivors for the system of underregulated residential youth treatment facilities. Many parents send their children to these programs for drug and alcohol use, mental health, eating disorders, disabilities, conversion therapy and more. These programs promise to rehabilitate teenagers from their troubles. Instead,...

LAKELAND, Fla. - A school that marketed itself as being a place for troubled teens in Lakeland has closed. The death of 17-year-old Naomi Wood at Lakeland Girls Academy, on May 19, 2020, was made public last year after an investigation showed she had complained about stomach pains in the weeks before. The investigation revealed Wood asked to see a doctor, but was refused and was instead offered over the counter medication, soup, and prayer. "Staff members made the child get up for meals and fed her soup, as that is their protocol when children are sick. They also prayed...