Your Participation Is Key To Success In February of 2015, a former resident at DR and his family filed a lawsuit against the school reporting that the boy was violently and repeatedly sexually assaulted by another resident at the program. (and have it be removed weeks later). Until now I had remembered my experience there as a happy one- I literally only remembered what went on during the day. They tear children apart, and they come out broken. Discovery Ranch is reported by many survivors to be an extremely abusive program. Case No. Education was packets and computer testing only poor. In January 2104, the boy was placed in a dorm at Discovery Ranch with three other boys, one who began grooming him and another resident for "sexual victimization" until he was "violently sodomized," the family says in the lawsuit. The decision you make for your child will stay with them forever. Paris Hilton just came out with a documentary on her experience at another abusive program just down the street from DR. The average stay is OVER a year not under like they love to say. We all cope in our own ways, but if we can help by sharing our experiences and what we learned, theres not a single one of us that would turn down a younger DR peer that is currently battling our same battles. They are left up to their own with limited to no help from the teachers. If anything, kids got worse from being here. Also if you notice, a large majority of the 5 star ratings are from former staff as opposed to parents/students. , Through my stay I personally witnessed: Two suicide attempts. Discovery Ranch strives to heal your family as a whole. Although you move on and mature, its a wound that never fully heals and cuts deep. discovery ranch lawsuit. They dont let parents talk freely to their own child. (Blood sprayed on me). Each part of his daily experience will reinforce his therapeutic goals. Completing the assessment is free. You can be assured that your son will not confront these challenges alone. He previously worked at the confirmedly abusive Provo Canyon School, which is widely regarded as the birthplace of the WWASP organization. The protocols here suck, and do absolutely nothing in the way of help. Caring, experienced professionals are ready to help your son. Are they just being a teenager? We have the record and independent verification to prove it. It is NOT your fault and youre NOT a lesser being despite what DR drilled into you. I was 15 years old. If Im in the car with someone and they make a wrong turn or something I will flip out and start having a panic attack because all I can think about it oh my god where are they taking me theyre locking me up again. Discovery is the legal term used to describe the different processes that require parties in a lawsuit to exchange information that each side possesses. May their souls rest in peace. They picked favorites and we were treated like garbage. Parents have no clue what they are getting themselves into by sending their children there. the villa pacific palisades, ca. They have the same goals in mind. He reportedly began working in the TTI because his brothers have worked at various other treatment centers. Staff refusing to let kid use the bathroom, and making him pee/poop himself. A kid was put in isolation for about 4 weeks before being moved to a different treatment center. Discovery ranchs idea of privileges is being able to sit on something other than hard wood chairs. If youre a troubled teen thats reading this that just recently got out, or its been years and its still effecting you, please believe me when I say that YOU ARE NOT ALONE. I suggest seeking different options for your child. The school uses research to help create an individualized treatment plan for each teen. They have the same goals in mind. They lied and were mainpulative, and power tripped all the time. I will never forgive Discovery Ranch for the damage they did to me, and the damage they continue to do to future generations. Discovery ranchs idea of privileges is being able to sit on something other than hard wood chairs. I have constant dreams where bugs are crawling all over my skin and I wake up screaming from anxiety. I had to raise a baby cow for the slaughter to learn to deal with loss, exercise until I threw up blood, pick up cow shit every day, I could go on and on. DO NOT RECOMMEND AT ALL! , The Troubled Teen Industry: Commodifying Disability and Capitalizing on Fear by Catherine Kushan. If you want to send your kid to either wilderness or discovery ranch why dont you do us all a favor parents and send your child to Disney Land so theyll be happy rather then send them to whats pretty much a mental institution for parents that have no idea what the fuck there doing. They do a terrific job at keeping kids quiet. I had never done drugs, drank, or even smoked a cigarette at this point in my life. ORDER AND MEMORANDUM DECISION. I understand that people need to help themselves and I cannot blame Discovery Ranch for my decisions but this environment definitely did not promote positive change in my life. A kid was put in isolation for about 4 weeks before being moved to a different treatment center. There are over 600 people in 2 different groups put together, and we are all in contact with many kids that just left. I thought I was actually crazy, but it was all real. The decision you make for your child will stay with them forever. We were treated like we were in prison, and if we stepped out of line, we had our privileges taken away. We were indirectly expected to manipulate visiting parents of troubled kids who have not yet been sent to treatment. And it wasn't just because he was suddenly a millionaire . I would estimate their rate of rehabilitation around 20%. 2023 Discovery Ranch Residential Treatment Center for Teen Boys |. I still maintain close relationships with both girls and boys who are around my age (23-27) that have gone through exactly what you are going through now; so whether its easier to talk to a guy or girl or someone with a similar case to yours, I can put you in contact with them if youd like (Free of charge too! This place did not save my life it scared me to have problems. H.A. Discovery Ranch South offers the perfect healing environment for troubled teens with mental health or behavioral issues. They will dream about it years after, waking up in the middle of the night from nightmares about being back there. Before you would consider sending your son away, you need to know that he is going to a place you can trust. While some people purchase land for views or for the prospect of building a property, Duane Ollinger 's family bought the massive 160-acre Utah plot known as Blind Frog Ranch to search for buried treasure. The program has a maxmimum enrollment of 60 boys, and the average length of stay is reported to be around 10 months, but this can be substantially longer if the boy is deemed resistant. We would act like we loved the treatment center, and that there wasnt any abuse going on. I was forced to do the most humiliating and degrading things possibly conceivable; I was forced to eat a girls used tampon, lick cow shit off a girls boots, unclog a toilet with my bare hands adult male staff would masturbate to me showering, changing, and using the toilet while masturbating (keep in mind I was 15. Id go on to say I have PTSD. If you absolutely need mental support for your child, I suggest something that is close to home, and something that does not limit their ability to see and interact with the outside world. Their motto is apparently Strength in the Struggle. They report that in January 2104, the boy was placed in a dorm at Discovery Ranch with three other boys, one who began grooming him and another resident for sexual victimization until he was violently sodomized. The attacker used threats of violence, coercion, guilt, and the merit system of Discovery Ranch to manipulate (the boy) to avoid reporting increasingly deviant sexual behaviors, including discussions about sex, pornography, masturbation, and sexual violence. According to the complaint, Discovery Ranchs merit system also prevented (him) from reporting the assaults because he believed that his inferior status and past interactions with Discovery Ranch staff and administrators would result in him being punished if he attempted to disclose the assaults. The family claims the sexual assaults went undiscovered and unchecked throughout the months of January and February and were only revealed when he [the assailant] was transferred from Discovery Ranch after being discovered engaging in bestiality with a horse. The family says that Discovery Ranch failed to adequately investigate the assailant for psychosexually deviant and violent tendencies before admitting him to Discovery Ranch and placing him in the dorm. Additional Information: Family Alleges Bestiality at Alternative School, 9/20/2020: (SURVIVOR) Discovery ranch seems to actively try to remove as many negative reviews as they can, many were mine being removed over and over. , your son will confront his personal challenges with the goal of healing and increasing his capacity which builds his self-confidence and self-esteem. I still hear screams from my friends being restrained in the back of my mind. Discovery Ranch only wants to know and talk about their truth which is nothing close to reality. I have maintained very close friendships with a handful of other patients that were there during my time (for a wide range of different reasons) and we even make it appoint to see each other each year. I was there almost ten years ago, and it feels like yesterday because of my PTSD. The boat bought with funds by Discovery Ranch was not once used for the kids, the owners just use it for personal use. DO NOT RECOMMEND AT ALL! Jeff (Google Reviews), HEAL Program Information Discovery Ranch, Family Alleges Bestiality at Alternative School, The Troubled Teen Industry: Commodifying Disability and Capitalizing on Fear by Catherine Kushan (mentions Discovery Ranch), Strength in the Struggle A Marketing Video uploaded by the school to YouTube, Discovery Ranch Secret Prisons for Teens. We have all suffered enough, its time to heal and create a system that works. Carebear (Yelp), 2015: (SURVIVOR) This place is horrible. They dont give the children any hope of getting out whatsoever. A court has maintained a number of claims the Granby Ranch Metropolitan District has made in a lawsuit against the owners of Granby Ranch. My personal experience here was horrible. I had been raped when i was 12 and was unable to tell my male therapist or parents about this happening because my family is very Catholic. Listen to your child, and dont fall into the traps that programs make which lead parents to think their child is untrustworthy, a liar, manipulator, etc. I had no contact with the outside world except letters to my parents which were censored, and observed phone calls once a month. Basically non-existent education. Dave Blackwell worked as a Therapist at Discovery Ranch. He previously worked at Provo Canyon School, which is widely regarded as the birthplace of the WWASP organization. DIAMOND RANCH ACADEMY, INC., Plaintiff and Counterclaim Defendant, v. CHELSEA FILER, Defendant and Counterclaim Plaintiff. Although the system failed us, my peers and I have created somewhat of a little support group to cope and its helped us tremendously. Its another long, tough, painful battle after you leave DR and I havent known one other person who didnt suffer after getting out. His step-father (my Dad) told me not to discuss it around him. He said that he was abused by a staff member while there. worked as the Clinical Director of Discovery Ranch. One small slip up, and you have all privileges taken away from a day to sometimes even a week. Proof is attached as an image. We had a close friend that took her life during our time there, we lost a friend to drug addiction that spiraled after leaving DR, and we had another friend who lost her life to cancer, which could have been detected in the earlier stages if DR didnt fail to seek proper medical attention (she was actually punished quite often for complaining about the pain and was either made to do hard manual labor or the staff would put her in isolation for days on end. This will provide him with the experience of a lifetime because Utah has a natural landscape that is second to none. They will dream about it years after, waking up in the middle of the night from nightmares about being back there. Listen to your child, and dont fall into the traps that programs make which lead parents to think their child is untrustworthy, a liar, manipulator, etc. ages 13-18. The lawsuit was filed in Eaton County Circuit Court more than four months after Hultberg initially "asked the district to provide mask exemptions that had been approved," in a Sept. 7, 2021, FOIA . Its sick and I hope in the future these places will be illegal and I will NEVER send my kids to one of these places. Therapeutic experiences challenge your son to learn and grow. This type of environment makes reporting abuse and neglect impossible for teenagers. Learn about discovery -- the legal procedures used to gather evidence for a lawsuit. if I saw him today i would punch him in the face. I was there almost ten years ago, and it feels like yesterday because of my PTSD. I wish I could give negitive stars! discovery ranch lawsuit. You get used to the screaming and pleading for help, it becomes background noise. san andreas fault, palm springs. But I fucking wasnt. My parents spent over $200,000 here before they realized I was not getting the help I needed. This merit system was easy for some kids to abuse, in one circumstance during my stay, a child was repeatedly raped, and was threatened with the merit system to get him to keep quiet. Education was packets and computer testing only poor. discovery ranch lawsuit. Like other behavior-modification programs, Discovery Ranch utilizes a level system based around a merit/demerit structure. He will receive consistent feedback. They would yell at us and use excessive force. My son, although he enjoyed his stay, refused to be brainwashed, and therefore got nothing therapeutical out of his stay; only resentment and anger, and he gained knowledge how to manipulate therapists to his benefit. Aside from the obvious prejudice and discrimination, many of these conditions are not legitimate clinical impairments, and those that are require individualized care, which this facility does not provide.. It is run like a prison. As I walked away in shock he was tackled by staff.This was after I had already seen two separate suicide attempts. We were treated like we were in prison, and if we stepped out of line, we had our privileges taken away. Our academic program meets your son at his level. Research shows this is the best approach to help your son and family heal mentally, physically, and emotionally. (Check glassdoor reviews) In return, we have lots of untrained, unequipped young adults who arent prepared to deal with seriously mentally ill children. Paris Hilton just came out with a documentary on her experience at another abusive program just down the street from DR. Non-Verbal Learning Disability including High Functioning Autism Spectrum Disorder, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD/ADD). Parents have no clue what they are getting themselves into by sending their children there. The decision you make for your child will stay with them forever. I still have insomnia and night terrors of being at that place. The parents believe discovery ranch and most kids have no hope of anyone listening to them because they think no one believes them and they wont talk and they lie about it. It is degrading and disrespectful and I will forever hate this program as they manipulate people into spending hundreds of thousands of dollars to not help there kids. If youre a troubled teen thats reading this that just recently got out, or its been years and its still effecting you, please believe me when I say that YOU ARE NOT ALONE. Also a staff there named Matt polson threatened to restrain me several times. Terrible place dont send your child here. They tear children apart, and they come out broken. Feel free to ask anything about my stay I'm an open book. You have been warned and I still have ptsd and Ive been going to therapy for 2 and a half years and more to come. Lawsuits, harassment then found him. My brother noted some of the staff was wonderful and he used their tips to get through challenges after his father died (my Moms 1st husband). Discovery Ranch is reported by many survivors to be an extremely abusive program. I had no contact with the outside world except letters to my parents which were censored, and observed phone calls once a month. Are they just being a teenager? You Have Questions, We Have Answers. They will dream about it years after, waking up in the middle of the night from nightmares about being back there. We have created this bond because unless you went through a detention center such as DR, you will not understand. You will also be able to observe your sons progress through our secure, password-protected parent portal. When we have the opportunity to get together, its a very special and meaningful time for all of us, we reminisce about the little funny stories that helped us get through the day during our time, we think about about all the suffering we endeared and how we survived, and we always take the time to honor our close friends that didnt and have passed. They left me more broken than they found me. , Please do not send your child to this horrific and abusive program. I still have insomnia and night terrors of being at that place. When the program opened, it housed both boys and girls on the same campus, but kept them completely seperate in different parts of the campus. Reading these reviews it is obviously a place that needs to make some changes if the accusations are correct. Discovery Ranch only wants to know and talk about their truth which is nothing close to reality. I literally couldnt make this shit up. In addition, survivors have reported that on the off-chance that they. Paris Hilton just came out with a documentary on her experience at another abusive program just down the street from DR. My parents spent over $200,000 here before they realized I was not getting the help I needed. My parents (his Mom and step-father) note sending him away added to his sense of rejection started by peer abuse even though they were desperate due to his issues at home and school. survivors to be an extremely abusive program. Even though I have left the program, if I dont follow their horribly rigorous and reclusive aftercare rules I go back. Our parents (his Mom and step-father) regret sending him there even all these years later. If you have a child with attention deficit disorder do not send your son here BECAUSE it is like water boarding to have a kid sit in a room for 7 hours straight and have them study all day even though they are trying. The civil lawsuit seeks a minimum of $350,000. We were victims of abuse. I dont believe that the people who tortured me were innately evil; i think it was a situation similar to Abu Ghraib. Basically non-existent education. Eaton County Circuit Court 1045 Independence Blvd. The tuition is reported to be anywhere between $6,500 to $12,000 per month. Brent Hall is reported by survivors to have run the facility. BE CAREFUL OF THEM. James (Yelp), 2019: (SURVIVOR) This place is sickening. The reviews on their website are COMPLETELY weeded before theyre posted. June 7, 2022 . Your PRECIOUS child is NOT safe here! The program has a maxmimum enrollment of 60 boys, and the average length of stay is reported to be around 10 months, but this can be substantially longer if the boy is deemed resistant. Parents wont know or understand the gravity of impact this experience has had until after you get out and have openly talked about it, and although its very hard not to blame or take your anger out on them, you have to realize they made their decision out of love and ignorance. They lied and were mainpulative, and power tripped all the time. 0. He since has shut down and will not discuss it so no idea if it was accurate or something he said when first home to avoid being sent back. He previously worked at, worked as the Residential Director of Discovery Ranch. This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. Your child will be put in with kids that are older than their age group, that were in gangs, that are addicted to drugs, etc. The decision you make for your child will stay with them forever. Countless amounts of times seeing staff restrain kids in inhumane ways. Its funny, almost all of the kids that left as a level 5 or 4 ARE DOING DRUGS AND ARE DOING WORSE AT HOME, goes to show how little the program works. This is not just a couple of resentful people. It is marketed as a Residential Treatment Center for teenage boys aged 13-18 with emotional and behavioral issues. DR does not accept transgender males. They often cause way more harm than good. Discovery Ranch is an Ascent Company behavior-modification program founded on August 21st, 2005. At one point during my stay, I saw my friend stab his arm repeatedly with a pencil, spraying blood all over me and the windowsill we were sitting on. At Discovery Ranch for Boys, we hold ourselves to the highest professional standards.