Top Ten Resources for Understanding the Troubled Teen Industry

1. American Bar Association Resolution 605 adopted by the House of Delegates at 2023 Annual Meeting report to the House of Delegates Resolution (2023)
   At its 2023 Annual Meeting, the ABA House of Delegates adopted a resolution supporting the "Stop Institutional Child Abuse Act" (SICAA) to address systemic failures in protecting children in residential care facilities. The resolution highlights the widespread abuse, neglect, and trauma perpetuated by inconsistent oversight and regulatory gaps. It calls for uniform federal and state standards to ensure children have access to education, healthcare, and protection from abuse, along with mechanisms for anonymous reporting. SICAA also proposes a federal working group and comprehensive study to drive accountability and reform, safeguarding the rights and well-being of vulnerable youth.

2. Catherine Krebs Five Facts About the Troubled Teen Industry American Bar Association Litigation Section (2021)
   The "troubled teen" industry, operating for over 50 years, encompasses therapeutic boarding schools, residential treatment centers, and wilderness programs. Five critical facts highlight the urgency of reform: (1) children face widespread physical, emotional, and sexual abuse; (2) facilities operate with little to no regulation; (3) placements often occur through private means or state agencies lacking oversight; (4) survivors endure lasting trauma; and (5) systemic change is vital to protect vulnerable youth and ensure accountability.

3. U.S. Senate Committee on Finance Staff Report Warehouses of Neglect: How Taxpayers are Funding Systemic Abuse in Youth Residential Treatment Facilities U.S. Senate (2024)
   The U.S. Senate Finance Committee’s Warehouses of Neglect report uncovers pervasive abuse and neglect in taxpayer-funded youth residential treatment facilities (RTFs). Operators such as Universal Health Services and Acadia Healthcare prioritize profits over child welfare, exposing vulnerable youth to physical, sexual, and emotional abuse, improper restraints, and appalling conditions. These systemic failures not only exacerbate trauma but also highlight the absence of meaningful oversight. The report demands urgent reforms to safeguard children in congregate care from exploitation and harm.

4. Eileen O’Grady The Kids Are Not Alright: How Private Equity Profits Off of Behavioral Health Services for Vulnerable and At-Risk Youth Private Equity Stakeholder Project (2022)
   The report, The Kids Are Not Alright, reveals systemic abuse and neglect in youth behavioral health facilities operated by private equity firms. Driven by profit, these companies implement cost-cutting measures—such as understaffing, untrained personnel, and unsafe conditions—that result in widespread physical, emotional, and sexual abuse. Focusing on foster care, developmental disabilities, and troubled teen programs, the report underscores the critical need for robust oversight and systemic reforms to protect vulnerable children and hold institutions accountable.

5. National Disability Rights Network Desperation without Dignity Conditions of Children Placed in For Profit Residential Facilities (2021)
   The Desperation Without Dignity report by the National Disability Rights Network exposes systemic abuse and neglect in for-profit residential facilities for youth with disabilities. Prioritizing profits over care, these facilities subject children to physical, sexual, and emotional abuse, unsafe conditions, improper restraints, and forced isolation. Often deprived of essential mental health treatment, many children leave more traumatized than when they arrived. The report underscores the urgent need for systemic reforms and robust community-based alternatives to protect vulnerable youth.

6. Sarah Fathallah & Sarah Sullivan, Away From Home: Youth Experiences of Institutional Placements in Foster Care Think of Us (2021)
   The Think Of Us report, Away From Home Youth Experiences of Institutional Placements in Foster Care reveals institutional placements as inherently harmful, describing them as punitive, carceral, and deeply traumatizing. Youth endure abuse, neglect, and isolation, with restricted autonomy and severed relationships exacerbating their trauma. The report advocates for abolishing these placements in favor of family-based care, urging systemic reforms to prioritize kinship placements, amplify lived experiences, and address the structural inequities perpetuating harm in child welfare systems.

7. Amanda Simmons Resolution 605, The Troubled Teen Industry, and Institutional Child Abuse American Bar Association American Bar Association, Litigation Section (2023)
   The ABA’s Resolution 605 demands action against institutional child abuse, exposing widespread harm, including neglect, physical abuse, and restraint misuse. It highlights disproportionate impacts on marginalized children, particularly LGBTQ+, BIPOC, and disabled youth, and calls for robust federal oversight to end harmful practices. The resolution urges child welfare lawyers to champion systemic reforms, prioritize family-based placements, and dismantle inequities, ensuring safety, dignity, and justice for vulnerable youth in congregate care.

8. Juliana Moraes Liu Orphanages by Another Name Kansas Journal of Law and Public Policy (2020)
   Juliana Moraes Liu’s article, Orphanages by Another Name, examines the persistence of institutional child abuse in modern congregate care settings. Despite reforms, these institutions often replicate the neglect and punitive environments of orphanages, compounding trauma for vulnerable children. Liu advocates for a systemic shift to family-based care, emphasizing the vital role of child welfare lawyers in driving legal and policy changes to dismantle harmful practices and prioritize the rights and well-being of affected youth

9. Ira P. Robbins Kidnapping Incorporated: The Unregulated Youth-Transportation Industry and the Potential for Abuse American Criminal Law Review (2014)
   Ira P. Robbins' Kidnapping Incorporated unveils the alarming practices of the unregulated youth-transportation industry, which forcibly delivers children to behavior-modification facilities notorious for abuse and neglect. These coercive methods exacerbate trauma and sustain harmful institutional systems. Robbins urges child welfare attorneys to lead the charge for robust regulations and systemic reforms, dismantling abusive practices and championing family-based alternatives that prioritize the rights, dignity, and well-being of vulnerable children

10. Juvenile Residential Programs: Literature Review (2019)
    The Juvenile Residential Programs: Literature Review reveals the entrenched abuse, neglect, and systemic failures within residential facilities, compounding trauma for vulnerable youth. It underscores the inadequacy of these institutions in providing safety, care, or meaningful rehabilitation. The report advocates for transformative reforms, including trauma-informed practices, rigorous oversight, and a decisive shift to family-based and community-centered alternatives, ensuring the protection, dignity, and well-being of children in the child welfare system

This resource guide will be updated as new legislation, investigations, and survivor-led research emerge.