Hi everyone, we are sharing this petition because we believe that in light of what we’ve seen and experienced, the Southstone Behavioral Health Rehabilitation Center should be shut down. Our plan is to take legal action, but as of now we are hoping a petition will help us kickstart the process. I (Sally) am writing this with Christina Wade, one of my hallmates and best friends from my time in this facility.

Sally’s experience:

In September 2020 I suffered from a near-fatal overdose and was admitted to the Southstone facility in Danville, VA in October.

Most of the minors in this facility, including me, were part of the foster care system and were either admitted by court order or social services. I’m going to start off by stating that this place is incredibly cruel and toxic. Stephanie Knowles (the CEO) and the rest of Southstone’s management presents this horrid place as helping with kids’ mental health needs, but the circumstances that other kids and I have faced at this facility are anything but helpful and have left a damaging impact on us.

In November 2020, a newly admitted resident was able to sneak in marijuana. Everyone knew it was on her, including staff; the smell was evident and especially so from her room, and she was a new patient. Still, some staff that day insisted that every single one of us were forced to strip naked and squat in front of staff. We did sign papers that allowed searches but only if it was reasonable; in this case, it was a total invasion of our privacy and was not necessary.

Beyond struggling with substance abuse, Christina and I were also admitted for PTSD, and MDD. However, this facility did not only admit non-violent offenders, and residents were forced together without any attention to the circumstances of their admission, often with violent consequences. There was one resident who had MULTIPLE rape charges against him, and we saw him in school every single day. I have witnessed several stabbings by residents, some holding contraband on them, who shanked other residents and even staff. I witnessed an autistic girl get jumped in her bedroom by seven other girls, and she was being choked so hard that I could see her face turning blue. There was not enough staff to restrain everyone. THIS PLACE WAS AND IS UNSAFE AND ONLY WORSENED MY PTSD.

A close friend from this facility, Eyezic, a black male with previous charges, was sent to Juvi after a fight which he only participated in in self-defense. Another resident, a white male with similar prior offenses, got into a fight that he started and was not even made to leave the home. This is just one example of Southstone’s discriminatory practices.

Other residents and I were pressured to snort drugs that residents had cheeked or else we would be threatened or punched; there was homemade shake and bake meth made with cleaning agents that I was pressured to snort. A rehab facility is NOT supposed to have such substances, the whole purpose is to get clean. There was minimal to no supervision, and it all depended on the staff member on duty.

I, Christina, and others were also sexually assaulted on multiple occasions. There was one incident where out of nowhere, a girl pulled my pants and undergarments down in front of everyone. I slapped the girl in the face and was the one who got yelled at for self defense. Christina and I also got into fights with other girls who had physically instigated them, and certain staff would make us feel guilty for defending ourselves.

We were rarely allowed outside unless we went to school, (depending on the staff) our windows were tinted so we could not see outside all day, and the food we were fed was very unhealthy and mostly frozen. Also, the medical emergencies that we experienced were not taken seriously. One day I asked for medical attention, as my food was not digesting and there was lots of blood in my stool, and I wasn’t sent to the ER for 3 or 4 hours. I witnessed my roommate and Christina both have infections so severe that I could hear them screaming and crying for nearly a week throughout the unit, in agonizing pain. By the time they left for the ER, their faces had lost nearly all color and they looked very sick. I also caught COVID here from Christina, due to the staff’s refusal to test her when she was sick with the fever, and Southstone’s refusal to quarantine her and the rest of us who caught it.

Although this facility is now shut down for adolescents, the CEO Stephanie Knowles wants to reopen this facility for adults. That is something that should never happen. The website’s claims are misleading, unacceptable, and ridiculous; Southstone's scathing (and accurate) Google reviews provide a better picture. Living at Southstone was the worst 6 months of my life. All we want is to shed light on what happened to us and get the justice we deserve, or failing that, at least prevent future harm to others. Life does not go as expected sometimes but you would think that a place where you’re sent to get help would not set back your healing process and worsen the trauma. I’m grateful for those on staff who actually cared for us and showed it. Mental health and addiction treatment are seriously important matters that should be dealt with carefully and professionally, not carelessly.

 

Christina’s experience:

I was at Southstone Behavioral Health for eight months and ten days. Those were some of the worst times of my life. Neither your well-being nor your safety was cared for. Therapy was honestly just a joke. Therapists barely see the residents because (we were told) they are busy with other case work. The residents will jump you if they don’t like you or you don’t please them, and they have made actual shake and bake meth there. A teacher broke a resident’s foot. I had COVID and was showing many of the symptoms of the virus. I talked to the CEO, Stephanie, about getting tested and she refused, claiming that the CDC told Southstone not to test the residents, even though multiple staff members were out due to COVID. My parents had to call Ruth Ann, the head of the therapy department, and demand I get tested. After I tested positive, they let other residents come into close contact with me and sleep in the same room as me. They do not care about your well-being there. Kids come in with trauma and issues but leave with even more. This place is honestly terrible. I pray for all the children sent here.

After Sally left in early 2021 things got much worse. One of the dietary staff was having sexual relations with one of the residents in exchange for a vape. After the CEO found out, she let him keep his job and continue working at Southstone before he left on his own terms. The older girls ended up moving to Birch, the male unit, and the little boys were below them. One night, the residents purposefully popped the sprinklers so one of the boys and another girl could have sex in the therapist bathroom. That same night sex, another girl snapped her ankle (like snapped it in half) and Southstone would not take her out to the ER immediately. Her foot looked so awful, and I’m sure that it’s going to be messed up forever because she did not get the immediate medical attention she needed. 

Also at this facility, a girl resident had two metal rods in her back for medical reasons. She said some really racist stuff and in response, another girl broke both the rods in her back; and they did not take the girl to the doctor for a few days. When staff finally took me to the emergency room for the huge infection in my cervix from my IUD, the doctor was furious that they didn’t take me out sooner and said that the infection could have given me blood poisoning if left untreated. Southstone staff also missed every single appointment I ever had to go to. At one point they missed 5 appointments in a row, and I was closed out with all the doctors because of Southstone’s negligence. 

We were mistreated and we really did not deserve it. It’s not like there was a way we could stand up for ourselves and get help. We tried but they never listened to us.

We never had a voice, we were labeled as mentally unstable and unfit, and we were basically left to suffer there until someone had the common decency to get us out.

This place should never open back up. It would do no good to anyone.

If you were a resident here, please feel free to share your experience with us in the comments and if you want to get involved with our legal process let us know please!