A STATE district attorney overseeing the investigation into dozens of physical and sexual abuse allegations at the Academy of Ivy Ridge has pledged to hold any wrongdoers to account to the full extent of the law.

St. Lawrence County DA Gary M. Pasqua told The U.S. Sun this week that his office’s phone has been ringing off the hook with calls made by former Ivy Ridge students accusing various staff members of historic abuse.

Those reports, increasing in number with each passing day, come on the heels of a shocking Netflix documentary about the school, The Program: Cons, Cults, and Kidnappings, which debuted on March 5.

On Monday, Pasqua held a press conference announcing that state officials were conducting an extensive investigation into the claims, and pledged to persue criminal charges where appropriate and possible.

Speaking to The U.S. Sun on Thursday, Pasqua said he has instructed local law enforcement to traul back through old case files in search of prior reports concerning Ivy Ridge that may have been overlooked or otherwise not followed up upon.

He also urged any other potential victims to come forward, pledging “every voice will be heard.”

“Any time a child is abused – whether that’s physically or sexually – we are going to take that seriously and do everything we can to get justice for that child – anything within our powers,” said Pasqua.

“But we are dealing with some instances here that are two decades old at this point.

“We aren’t sure what we are going to be able today, but if students come forward and there is something we can do, we will do it and nothing will deter us from doing it.

“That’s why we are asking anyone who can tell us about allegations to do that and anyone who can corroborate that, those are the individuals I want to come forward.

“We want to get justice for them if we can to the best of our ability, and hold anyone responsible to the full extent of the law.

“I hope we are able to do that,” he added.

“We’re not there yet, we have a lot of work to do, but eventually we hope to do something.”

WARNING SHOTS

Earlier this week, The U.S. Sun exclusively revealed that officials raised concerns about the conditions inside Ivy Ridge at least twice in the years before the school closed for good in 2009.

In 2006, New York’s State Education Department sent a letter to Ivy Ridge’s director, Jason Finlinson, accusing the troubled teen facility of “serious deficiencies” in its academic services and health and safety protocol.

The Education Department said it made the assessment during two visits to Ivy Ridge’s campus in Ogdensburg, New York, and specifically gave cause for concern about the faculty’s restraining training and practices.

“The Department has found health and safety aspects of AIR’s [Academy at Ivy Ridge’s] program to be deficient,” reads an excerpt of the letter.

“Deficiencies include inadequate systems to protect the health and safety of students, a chain of command that places one group of students over another, prohibition against students possessing any phone numbers or addresses, overly restrictive policies regarding student use of restrooms, and inadequate staff training related to student restraint.

“[…] the Department finds that AIR’s application has serious deficiencies in the areas of academics and health and safety,” it continues.

“The Department’s review revealed that AIR is principally a behavior modification center and not a school that should be accorded the privilege of administering Regents examinations and awarding diplomas.”

One of the state officials who visited the campus, Thomas Hogan, provided a sworn statement as part of a lawsuit filed against Ivy Ridge the same year over fraud and racketeering allegations that were later thrown out.

While insisting he hadn’t witnessed any “prohibited conduct” during the visit, Hogan raised concerns about the standard of education being afforded to the students and noted Ivy Ridge’s affiliation with the controversial and scandal-ridden organization, World Wide Association of Specialty Programs and Schools (WWASPS).

“White the state purpose of the corporation specified the operation fo a boarding and day school, the supporting information clearly indicated that a primary goal of the organization was to change the behavior of a population of defiant and/or troubled youth,” stated Hogan.

“Moreover, the supporting information submitted to ONS made reference to ‘Tranquility Bay’ and ‘High Impact’, two boot-camp style behavior modification programs for troubled youth, located outside of New York State,” that are affiliated with WWASPS.

“The methods used by Tranquility Bay and other programs affiliated with WWASP were the subject of substantial media publicity at the time […] several WWASP-affiliated programs have been closed by authorities after allegations of physical abuse.”

The letter’s existence raises questions as to what the state knew about Ivy Ridge’s disturbing practices and whether anything was done to investigate the “deficiencies” cited by the Education Department.

The U.S. Sun later unearthed a second letter, penned three years earlier, urging the US Attorney General to investigate Ivy Ridge and all other programs affiliated with the scandal-ridden World Wide Association of Specialty Programs and Schools (WWASPS).

Written by congressional Democratic Representative George Miller in November 2003, the letter urged then-AG John Ashcroft to take immediate action and investigate allegations of child abuse, human rights violations, and fraud at all of the 11 WWASPS facilities then in operation across the US and aboard.

To emphasize his request, Miller cited a series of articles published by the New York Times describing “an ongoing practice of physical and emotional abuse of children” in WWASP facilities, including physical restraint, solitary confinement, and denial of medical services.

“There have been serious allegations that hundreds of children have been mistreated or neglected and their legal rights have regularly been flaunted,” wrote Miller, a senior Democratic member on the Committee on Education and the Workforce.

“There are also hundreds of parents who assert that they were drawn into the program by misleading advertising.

“We believe that the Department of Justice should investigate whether federal laws concerning child abuse and neglect, interstate commerce, or unfair or deceptive advertising have been broken by WWASPS or those operating these facilities.”

Miller cited numerous accusations of abuse at various WWASPS facilities, including in Utah, California, and South Carolina.

“Given this extensive and consistent pattern of abuse, I am very concerned that the health and welfare of hundreds of children may be in jeopardy,” continued Miller.

The letter sparked a chain of correspondence between Miller and Ashcroft’s office, which lasted until September 2004.

There have been serious allegations that hundreds of children have been mistreated or neglected and their legal rights have regularly been flaunted.

Rep. George Millerin a 2004 letter to the US Attorney General

In a correspondence dated May 11, 2004, Miller drew Ashcroft’s attention to a criminal investigation in New York, concerning a WWASP facility near the Canadian border: Ivy Ridge.

“Last week the state Attorney General’s Office in New York began a criminal investigation into possible ‘improprieties’ within WWASPS facilities following the alleged assault of a teenager while being transported to a WWASPS facility in New York near the Canadian border,” wrote Miller.

“In addition to New York, criminal investigations into abuse and assault have taken place in Utah and Montana.

“The investigation in Montana resulted in a former staffer pleading guilty to felony criminal endangerment.”

‘INVESTIGATE THEM’

In the Ivy Ridge case, two men, Leonard Faulstick and Timothy Hurd, were accused in March 2004 of assaulting a 17-year-old boy while escorting him to the facility.

Police there say the teen was beaten while in cuffs after he grabbed the steering wheel of the car and caused it to crash.

The men, who pleaded not guilty, were contracted by a company called Teen Escort Service to transport the teen to Ivy Ridge.

WWASPS officials denied any wrongdoing, noting Teen Escort was not affiliated with their organization, but was one of three approved transport services that it recommended to parents.

The outcome of the case is unclear. The New York State Attorney General’s office has been contacted for comment on the matter.

Miller has also not yet returned a request for comment.

Miller’s months-long correspondence with Ashcroft led to a dead end, with the Attorney General declining to investigate WWASPS citing a lack of jurisdiction.

The unearthing of Miller’s and the state Education Department’s letters has stoked anger among former students at Ivy Ridge, who believe officials could and should have intervened to close the school over various alleged abuses, including psychological, physical, and sexual abuse.

Two former Ivy Ridge students told The U.S. Sun they are encouraged by the DA’s announcement that officials are finally investigating historic abuse allegations at the school.

However, they believe more could have been done sooner, and that Ivy Ridge should’ve been forcibly shut down by authorities years ago.

“We are grateful that the DA made a statement that his office will investigate these allegations and will take action, if possible, for the benefit of survivors,” said ex-student Cynthia Lane.

“But, the statement that the office was not aware of issues at the Academy at Ivy Ridge, beyond the riot in 2005, brings up the question of other evidence within New York state. 

“I fear, just as before in 2006, there will be another systemic failure by those in a position of power and with the capability of taking action.

“How can one government department state that there are legitimate concerns for the health and safety of children, and there is not a documented follow-up investigation?

“Where were social services?” asked Cynthia.

“That could have been all it took to shut Ivy Ridge down 3 years before they closed from a lack of profit and enrollment. Three years to save countless children from abuse and trauma.

“New York State had knowledge of a problem; child abuse is the business of anyone who knows — and they knew.”

Eddie Curley, who attended Ivy Ridge between 2005 and 2006, similarly asked why state officials didn’t intervene to close down the school years before it voluntarily did so itself, despite raising concerns about the conditions inside.

“The state of NY to my knowledge never did a subsequent investigation regarding these allegations rather allowing the school to operate for an additional 3 years until lack of enrollment finally shuttered its doors,” he said.

“New York State not only knew there was a problem, they failed us children miserably.”

UNDER THE SPOTLIGHT

Former staff at Ivy Ridge have come under increasing scrutiny online in recent days.

Pasqua said his office has been contacted by numerous people in the last week – who he declined to name – who have reached out to law enforcement seeking assistance to deter harassment.

While it’s unclear who those individuals are, the school’s director Jason Finlinson, was fired from his position at a Utah-based construction firm last week mere hours after the documentary’s release, The U.S. Sun exclusively revealed.

Layton Construction confirmed Finlinson had been employed as a safety manager but was fired on March 7.

When pressed on what led to Finlinson’s termination, the company declined to comment further, citing internal policy.

Another ex-Ivy Ridge staffer to fall under mounting scrutiny in the documentary’s wake is Amy Ritchie, the former director of the girls’ program.

Ritchie is currently employed as a mental health therapy aid at the St. Lawrence Psychiatric Center in Ogdensburg, New York, state records show.

Ritchie worked at Ivy Ridge between 2001 and 2008 and was accused in The Program of engaging in and enabling countless instances of physical and emotional abuse against young girls placed in her care.

In the documentary, numerous former female students also claimed they were groomed and sexually assaulted by a female staff member – who was not named – who allegedly went unpunished under Ritchie’s directorship.

Requests for comment about the allegations made in The Program have so far gone unanswered by Ritchie.

After leaving Ivy Ridge, she went on to become the residential program director at another controversial troubled teen facility, Sunset Bay Academy, in California, which has also fallen subject to numerous allegations of abuse.

At least two other former Ivy Ridge staffers work at St. Lawrence. Their names are being withheld until they can be reached for comment.

Both of the staffers are men and employed as security and safety officers at the care facility, state records show.

The U.S. Sun approached the New York Office of Mental Health (OMH) about the employment status of Ritchie and the two men after information began circulating among locals and ex-students that they’d been fired within 48 hours of The Program airing on Netflix.

Justin Mason, a spokesperson for OMH, said he was unable to discuss the employment history of any current or former employees but offered the following written statement.

“OMH takes all allegations of abuse or neglect very seriously,” wrote Mason.

“All agency employees who have direct patient contact are thoroughly vetted, fingerprinted, undergo a criminal background check, and are cross-referenced against the Justice Center’s Staff Exclusion List and the State’s Child Abuse Registry before they are hired.”

The St. Lawrence Psychiatric Center is just a 15-minute drive from the now-abandoned Ivy Ridge campus, which was listed for sale for $875,000 last weekend.

CONCERN REMAINS

At its peak, Ivy Ridge had 600 students, all paying nearly $4,000 per month, allowing it to rake in over $20 million a year.

Students were subject to crowded living quarters, physical restraint for minor infractions, solitary confinement, brainwashing, and, in some cases, physical, psychological, and even alleged sexual abuse.

The school had a bizarre and convoluted points system designed to keep students in “the program” for as long as possible to ensure their parents kept shelling out tens of thousands of dollars a year in tuition.

However, many of the faculty members weren’t even qualified to teach children, and the “diploma” that students received upon graduation from Ivy Ridge was worthless and not officially recognized by the state of New York.

All 11 of WWASPS facilities in the US and beyond have since closed.

However numerous similar schools are still in operation nationwide, with the industry drawing in profits of more than half a billion dollars per year.