In inpatient mental health facilities, violence against residents—even children—is entirely too common. A long series of assaults, rapes, and other violent crimes that are reported to have occurred at Fairmount Behavioral Health in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, has prompted both civil and criminal legal actions against the facility and its employees.
It’s inexcusable for an institution to allow such a pattern of violence against the residents for whom the facility is responsible. When many of the patients are children and teenagers, the failure to protect residents is even more horrifying.
If you suffered abuse or an assault at Fairmount Behavioral Health in Philadelphia, you have legal rights—and you may be entitled to monetary compensation. Our child abuse lawsuit attorneys have experience investigating these challenging claims of institutional abuse and assault and fighting for the survivors of abuse.
Find out how we can help with a free, confidential case review. Just call 866-778-5500 today or complete our online form.
Fairmount Behavioral Health facility in Philadelphia, PA, is home to mental health inpatient programs for both adolescents ages 12 to 17 and adults. In many cases, inpatient residents at Fairmount Behavioral Health have been “involuntarily committed” to the facility. In other words, they’re trapped there against their will.
The nonprofit public benefit corporation and self-described grassroots campaign Unsilenced Project, Inc. maintains a comprehensive archive of news articles related to assault at Fairmount Behavioral Health in PA.
Over the span of just five years, so much violence was reported to have occurred at Fairmount Behavioral Health that police were called to the facility nearly 100 times, according to ABC Action News. Keep in mind, too, that this number represents only the assaults that were reported and for which the police were called. It doesn’t include instances in which victims didn’t report the assault because they feared retaliation from the staff member who perpetrated it or the victim’s allegations were ignored by staff at Fairmount Behavioral Health.
It’s unacceptable for so many attacks, assaults, and rapes to occur in a single institution in so short a time. The alleged perpetrators of the nearly 100 instances of assaults and sexual violence against residents of Fairmount Behavioral Health have included both employees and fellow patients.
In April 2021, a former Fairmount Behavioral Health staff member who had been accused of raping a patient in 2020 pled guilty to a felony charge of Institutional Sexual Assault, ABC Action News reported.
A separate legal matter, this time arising out of the 2016 rape of a patient at Fairmount Behavioral Health, involved a plaintiff who had been assaulted by a fellow patient. The alleged perpetrator turned out to be a registered sex offender, The Legal Intelligencer reported. When the plaintiff’s legal team asked Fairmount Behavioral Health to admit or deny whether it was known in the institution that the patient who attacked her was a registered sex offender, the defendant declined to answer. Instead, Fairmount Behavioral Health’s legal team objected under grounds that the Superior Court of Pennsylvania would later rule were “misguided.” The Superior Court of Pennsylvania ruling in favor of the plaintiff would establish that Fairmount Behavioral Health “must answer whether it knew patient was registered sex offender,” The Legal Intelligencer reported.
We are here to help.
Both child and adult patients who suffered abuse or assaults at Fairmount Behavioral Health facility in Philadelphia may have the right to file a lawsuit against the institution.
There are many reasons survivors of sexual abuse file lawsuits against facilities like Fairmount Behavioral Health. One reason is to get answers about what happened to them and hold the institution accountable for the abuse or assaults they suffered. For some survivors of abuse and assault, seeing the facility held accountable for its failures can provide a sense of justice or closure.
Another reason to move forward with a lawsuit is the financial compensation you can secure. No amount of money can undo what has happened or make what you have been through acceptable. This compensation can, however, help you afford care and treatment for the physical injuries and emotional trauma that you suffered because of the abuse or assault.
Many survivors of abuse and sexual assault are able to better cope with the trauma of their past and feel more like themselves again with appropriate care and treatment. For those whose abuse or assault occurred in an inpatient mental health facility, it’s all the more important that the treatment they are getting encompasses evidence-based methods provided by trustworthy, compassionate counselors in an environment where they can feel safe. The compensation secured through an institutional assault lawsuit claim can give you access to the care you need.
When you’re trying to move forward with life after being abused or assaulted, the last thing you need is the pressure of a legal battle. That’s where we come in.
Getting answers, accountability, and the financial compensation you deserve doesn’t have to be another source of stress. Our attorneys handle every aspect of our clients’ legal claims for them. With us on your side, you can focus on recovery while we navigate the complexities of the legal process for you.
Every survivor of abuse and assault should have the right to hold accountable the parties that are to blame for the harm they suffered. That’s why our attorneys represent all of our clients on a no-win, no-fee basis. You’ll pay nothing at all for the consultation and case review. If you hire us to represent you, we handle everything from the initial investigation all the way through a trial or out-of-court settlement at no upfront cost to you. You’ll only ever owe us a fraction of the compensation we get on your behalf—and only after we have successfully secured money damages for you.
What you’ve been through never should have happened. Together, we’ll work to hold accountable the facility that failed to keep you safe. If you’re ready to get your legal questions answered and have your claim reviewed at no cost, just call 866-778-5500 or contact us online today.
