Institutional Sexual Abuse Claims

Experienced Sexual Abuse in a Utah or New Mexico Institution? You May Still Have a Case.

Even if it was decades ago, you may still qualify for a free, confidential case review.

Tosi Law works with people who experienced sexual abuse or sexual misconduct while they were in the care of an institution in Utah or New Mexico. Many of the people we hear from were kids or teens in a juvenile detention center, treatment program, wilderness program, group home, or foster placement. We also take cases involving churches, hospitals, behavioral health centers, schools, and other institutions.

It may have been a staff member, counselor, guard, therapist, foster parent, coach, teacher, or clergy member. It may have been another resident the staff should have been watching. Many survivors never told anyone. Others spoke up and weren’t believed.

You don’t need to know whether you have a case before you reach out. That’s what the review is for.

You May Qualify If This Happened to You

You may qualify if you experienced sexual abuse, sexual assault, or sexual misconduct while you were in the care, custody, or supervision of an institution in Utah or New Mexico. That includes harm by someone who worked or volunteered there, and harm by another resident or student the institution should have protected you from.

It doesn’t matter if you lived in the state or were sent there from somewhere else. A lot of kids were sent to Utah and New Mexico programs from out of state.

Whether a claim can still be filed depends on who’s responsible, whether it’s a private or government institution, and when it happened or came to light. That’s why a quick, free review is worth it, even if a lot of time has passed.

Types of Institutions We Handle

Our main focus is youth facilities:

• Juvenile detention centers and state youth centers
• Youth corrections and juvenile justice facilities
• Residential treatment centers and therapeutic boarding schools (“troubled teen” programs)
• Wilderness and outdoor therapy programs
• Group homes and youth shelters
• Foster care and treatment foster care placements

We also handle claims involving:

• Churches and religious organizations, including youth programs
• Hospitals, psychiatric hospitals, and behavioral health centers
• Public and private schools and school districts
• Youth organizations, camps, and sports programs
• Other institutions not listed here

For decades, Utah has been one of the country’s biggest destinations for youth residential treatment, and in 2021 the state passed S.B. 127 to tighten oversight. In New Mexico, news reports and lawsuits have raised concerns about state juvenile facilities, foster care, and private treatment programs.

Facilities Named in Public Reports or Lawsuits

The institutions below have been named in news reports, lawsuits, criminal cases, or public records involving sexual abuse or sexual misconduct allegations.

Utah

Youth facilities

• Provo Canyon School (Provo area): Former students have described mistreatment for decades, and a 2021 lawsuit alleged a staff member sexually abused a 13-year-old.
• Diamond Ranch Academy (Hurricane): A 2017 lawsuit alleged a therapist sexually abused a 16-year-old student.
• Red Rock Canyon School (St. George, closed 2019): Lawsuits alleged the school failed to protect students from staff sexual abuse.
• West Ridge Academy, formerly Utah Boys Ranch (West Jordan): A former student’s 2012 lawsuit alleged repeated sexual abuse by staff.
• Turn-About Ranch (Escalante): A 2021 lawsuit alleged a staff member sexually assaulted a teen resident.
• Copper Hills Youth Center (West Jordan): A 2019 lawsuit alleged poor supervision allowed residents to sexually harm a teen.
• Cache Valley Youth Center (Logan, state-run): A former staff member was sentenced in 2023 for sexually abusing a 16-year-old held there.
• Oasis Ascent (Millcreek): A youth mentor was charged in 2023 with sexually abusing a teen resident.
• Utah Youth Village and Utah DCFS foster care (Salt Lake area): A 2001 lawsuit alleged a foster placement led to a child’s sexual abuse.

Hospitals and treatment centers

• Highland Ridge Hospital (Midvale): A news investigation reported patient sexual assaults, including minors, that often weren’t reported to police.
• Lakeview Hospital (Bountiful): A 2019 lawsuit alleged the hospital could have prevented a doctor’s sexual abuse of a young girl.

Churches and youth organizations

• The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: Lawsuits have alleged local leaders failed to report or stop child sexual abuse.
• Boy Scouts of America, Crossroads of the West Council: Hundreds of Utah claims were filed in the national Scouts bankruptcy.
• Catholic Diocese of Salt Lake City: The diocese publishes a list of clergy with credible allegations involving minors.

Schools

• Ogden School District: A 2020 lawsuit alleged the district ignored complaints about a teacher later convicted of sexually abusing students.
• Alpine School District: A former student sued over alleged sexual abuse by a junior high teacher in the 1980s.

New Mexico

Youth facilities

• Youth Diagnostic and Development Center (YDDC) (Albuquerque, state-run): 2014 lawsuits alleged staff physically and sexually abused boys held there.
• Camino Nuevo Youth Center (Albuquerque, state-run): A lawsuit alleged a corrections officer sexually abused youth in custody.
• Lincoln Pines Youth Center (near Ruidoso, state-run): A state therapist was indicted in 2015 on allegations involving a boy held there.
• Bernalillo County Juvenile Detention Center (Albuquerque): A lawsuit alleged an officer sexually abused a teen girl in custody.
• Sequoyah Adolescent Treatment Center (Albuquerque, state-run): A staff member was charged in 2016 over alleged sexual contact with a resident.
• Desert Hills of New Mexico (Albuquerque, closed 2019): A 2025 lawsuit alleges a worker sexually abused a 14-year-old there.
• FamilyWorks treatment foster care (Albuquerque area): A 2023 jury verdict involved a foster parent’s sexual abuse of a young girl.
• CYFD foster care, Raton placement: The state settled claims in 2024 after a foster parent was convicted of sexual contact with a child.

Hospitals and treatment centers

• Mesilla Valley Hospital (Las Cruces): A 2025 lawsuit alleges a counselor sexually abused a teen patient, and a former nurse was charged in 2026.

Churches

• Archdiocese of Santa Fe: It settled clergy sexual abuse claims from about 375 survivors through bankruptcy in 2022.
• Diocese of Gallup: It settled clergy sexual abuse claims through bankruptcy in 2016.
• Diocese of Las Cruces: Lawsuits filed in 2025 allege priests sexually abused children between 1956 and 1990.

Schools

• Albuquerque Public Schools: The district agreed to a $4.75 million settlement over a former teacher’s alleged sexual abuse of a student.
• Las Cruces Public Schools: A 2024 jury verdict involved a teacher’s sexual misconduct with a student.
• Santa Fe Public Schools: The district settled lawsuits over a teacher later convicted of child sexual abuse.

This list is based on news reports, lawsuits, court records, and other public information. Many of these are allegations that haven’t been proven, and being listed here doesn’t mean any institution was found liable or did anything wrong. Tosi Law is not claiming involvement in any case mentioned. We accept claims involving institutions that aren’t on this list, so if yours isn’t here, please still reach out.

Is There a Deadline to File?

Deadlines are different in each state, and they depend on who you’d be filing against. Here’s the general picture.

Utah

In Utah, a survivor of child sexual abuse can sue the person who sexually abused them at any time. Claims against facilities, companies, churches, or other organizations usually have much shorter deadlines. Claims against government agencies, like state youth centers or public schools, may require a written notice of claim within one year.

New Mexico

In New Mexico, a childhood sexual abuse lawsuit generally has to be filed by your 24th birthday, or within three years of when you first told a licensed medical or mental health provider about it while getting care, whichever is later. That second rule means some survivors may still have options years or even decades later. Claims against government agencies, like CYFD, county detention centers, or public schools, have their own rules, which may include written notice within as little as 90 days and a two-year filing limit.

Because these rules are complicated and depend on your situation, it’s smart to talk with a lawyer sooner rather than later. A free review can show you which options are still open.

You Are Not Alone

Many people who were placed in youth facilities, treatment programs, and foster care as kids have come forward, along with survivors from churches, schools, and hospitals. What happened to you wasn’t your fault.

Speaking up can feel hard. A private review lets you learn your options at your own pace.

Start a Free Confidential Case Review

Whether it’s been a few years or a few decades, you may still qualify.

If you experienced sexual abuse or sexual misconduct in a youth facility, treatment center, foster placement, church, hospital, school, or other institution in Utah or New Mexico, fill out the short form below. A case specialist will reach out privately, on your schedule.