Wolverine Secure Treatment Center Sex Abuse Lawsuit Settlement

This page will look at lawsuits involving sexual abuse of juvenile inmates at Wolverine Secure Treatment Center (“WSTC”) in Saginaw County, Michigan. Recent evidence suggests that countless juvenile inmates at WSTC may have been victims of sexual abuse committed by staff members at the facility.

WSTC abuse victims are now bringing civil sex abuse lawsuits against the private company that operated WSTC. If you have a potential sex abuse lawsuit against the Wolverine Secure Treatment Center, call our sex abuse lawyers today at 800-553-8082 or get a free online consultation. Our attorneys will fight to get you the overdue settlement compensation that you deserve.

About Wolverine Secure Treatment Center

The Wolverine Secure Treatment Center is located in Buena Vista Township in Saginaw County, Michigan. WSTC is owned and operated by a private company, Wolverine Human Services, although it was licensed by the State of Michigan. WSTC began operation in 1997, at which time it was the first private detention facility for juvenile inmates in Michigan.

WSTC was a secure detention facility for male juvenile inmates between the ages of 12 and 21. The facility offered a full range of treatment and educational services to inmates, including counseling, psychiatric services, sex offender treatment, and drug addiction treatment. It also offered educational services through its Wolverine Academy.

WSTC was a very large facility that looked very much like a prison from the outside. The 62,000 square foot building was surrounded by a 16-foot perimeter security fence. Inside, inmates are housed either in cells or secure group dormitories which host up to 10 inmates each. WSTC also had a recreational area with a basketball court.

Wolverine Human Services and Michigan Juvenile Detention Lawsuits

Wolverine Human Services is, as we just discussed, the private company that owned and operated the Wolverine Secure Treatment Center in Saginaw County. The organization has long been involved in youth residential care in Michigan and has operated multiple juvenile facilities across the state, including programs in Saginaw, Detroit, and Vassar. Although the State of Michigan licensed these facilities, they were run by Wolverine Human Services. They were, we believe, jointly responsible for hiring staff, training employees, and ensuring that youth in their custody were safe.

Recent lawsuits have not only targeted the Wolverine Secure Treatment Center itself, but also Wolverine Human Services as a corporate entity. Survivors of abuse allege that the company failed to screen its staff, ignored repeated complaints, and allowed a dangerous culture of abuse and neglect to take root across its facilities. These lawsuits argue that Wolverine Human Services should be held accountable for the harm suffered by children under its care, regardless of which facility they were placed in.

Although the most serious allegations have surfaced from WSTC, survivors from other Wolverine juvenile facilities in Michigan may also have legal claims. If abuse occurred at a Wolverine-run juvenile detention center, the same pattern of negligence could form the basis of a civil lawsuit. This is not simply about one building in Saginaw County. It is about a statewide system of private juvenile facilities that failed to protect some of Michigan’s most vulnerable children.

Michigan Moves to Revoke WSTC License

In early 2021, Michigan began the process of shutting down Wolverine Secure Treatment Center (WSTC) after repeated reports of abuse and misconduct surfaced. By February 8, 2021, the facility’s license was downgraded to a second provisional status because of serious violations of state regulations. These violations had been detailed in investigative reports from late 2020 and continued to surface in early 2021.

On January 17, 2021, an alarming incident occurred at Wolverine Secure Treatment Center involving the use of unsafe and unauthorized restraint techniques on a juvenile resident. Surveillance footage captured staff using methods that violated Therapeutic Crisis Intervention (TCI) standards, resulting in the resident sustaining a black eye and visible injuries, including broken blood vessels. Despite the obvious harm, the staff failed to provide immediate medical attention, treating the situation as if it were inconsequential.

That same day, another resident was similarly mistreated. Improper restraints caused the individual to strike their head, leading to swelling and pain. Yet again, medical care was delayed, reflecting a pattern of indifference to the well-being of those in their care.

Adding to the troubling nature of these incidents, staff neglected to report the abuse to Children’s Protective Services, as required by law. This failure to act not only violated mandatory reporting obligations but also highlighted a broader culture of negligence at the facility. These incidents were not isolated; they were symptomatic of a systemic disregard for safety and accountability.

The leadership and staff at WSTC demonstrated an appalling lack of concern for the vulnerable youth they were tasked with protecting, fostering an environment where harm was allowed to occur unchecked. What our juvenile detention center lawyers have seen over and over is that when you have a poorly run juvenile hall, you have a recipe for sex abuse.

WSTC Shuts Down in 2021

In 2021, the Wolverine Secure Treatment Center permanently shut its doors for good. This was no surprise. It was the inevitable result of years of physical and sexual abuse, neglect, and failure. WSTC became a place where safety was promised but suffering was delivered.

State officials finally acted after years of complaints. They waited too long. Allegations of physical abuse, emotional trauma, and neglect had been piling up for years. And yet … WSTC leadership did nothing. Staff were poorly screened. Training was an afterthought. Complaints were ignored. Warnings were brushed aside.

The financial side is also a mess. Lawsuits exposed the depth of the problem. State funding vanished. The facility was no longer sustainable, morally or financially. The state revoked its license, and the doors finally closed.

Lawsuits Allege Sexual Abuse of Juveniles at Wolverine Secure Treatment Center

In 2024, the first of what is expected to be many civil lawsuits was filed against WSTC on behalf of a group of former juvenile inmates at the facility. The lawsuit alleges that these vulnerable juveniles were subjected to horrific sexual abuse by staff members—individuals who were entrusted with their care and protection. WSTC, as a facility responsible for the safety of children, had a legal and moral duty to shield these young inmates from harm.

The sex abuse lawsuits claim that WSTC negligently breached its duty by failing to properly screen, hire, and supervise staff members, and by turning a blind eye to complaints and glaring warning signs of abusive conduct. Was this indifference to the welfare of these children the result of systemic failures or simply a culture of callous neglect? It is an interesting question. But most victims do not care about the answer. They want justice. In a civil lawsuit, justice comes in the form of money. Victims want fair settlement compensation for the harm that was done to them.

FAQs About Wolverine Secure Treatment Center Sex Abuse Lawsuits

Who can file a lawsuit against Wolverine Secure Treatment Center or Wolverine Human Services?

Anyone who was sexually abused, physically mistreated, or neglected while detained at the Wolverine Secure Treatment Center may have the right to file a civil sex abuse lawsuit. This includes survivors who suffered abuse directly at the hands of staff, or those who were harmed by other detainees while staff failed to act. Lawsuits can also extend to Wolverine Human Services, the company that owned and operated the facility, for its role in hiring, training, and supervising staff.

Can I still file a lawsuit if the abuse happened years ago?

Yes. Michigan law gives survivors until their 28th birthday to file, or three years from the time they realized that the abuse caused their injuries. Courts also recognize the discovery rule, which extends the filing window when survivors connect the trauma to the abuse later in life. But the courts have not been very generous in their treatment of these discovery rule cases. But, as we discuss more below, lawmakers in Michigan are considering a bill that would eliminate the statute of limitations altogether, which could give many more survivors a path to justice. This bill has passed the Michigan Senate (easily with bipartisan support) but has stalled in the Michigan House.

How much money can survivors receive in a Wolverine Secure Treatment Center lawsuit?

The settlement value of a case depends on factors like the severity of the abuse, the strength of the evidence, and the lasting impact on the survivor’s life. While no two cases are identical, past settlements provide useful markers. For example, Los Angeles County recently resolved a wave of juvenile detention center sex abuse lawsuits with an average payout of nearly $600,000 per survivor. The facts in Michigan cases will be different, but that settlement offers a sense of how these types of claims are being evaluated. Those California settlements are a benchmark for settlements in Michigan and everywhere else. Survivors of the most severe abuse, or those with strong corroborating evidence, will see, all things being equal, higher settlement compensation.

What if the abuse happened at another Wolverine facility, not just WSTC?

Wolverine Human Services operated multiple facilities across Michigan, not just the Saginaw County center. Survivors from other Wolverine-run juvenile facilities may also have legal claims. If you suffered abuse in any Wolverine facility, the same negligent practices that allowed harm at WSTC may apply to your case.

What does it cost to file a lawsuit?

Our sex abuse lawyers work on a contingency fee basis. That means you pay nothing upfront, and we only receive a fee if we secure a settlement or verdict in your favor. Consultations are free and confidential.

Statute of Limitations for Michigan Sex Abuse Lawsuits

Right now, Michigan law still sets strict limits on when survivors of childhood sexual abuse can file a civil lawsuit. The rule says you have until your 28th birthday, or three years from the moment you discover that the abuse caused your injuries, whichever gives you more time. That framework has left countless people out in the cold. Abuse that happened years ago, and the trauma that only surfaces later in life, can collide with deadlines that were never designed with survivors in mind.

But the ground is (maybe) shifting. In 2025, the Michigan Senate passed a bill that would eliminate the statute of limitations for child sexual abuse claims. It would open the courthouse doors for anyone, no matter how long ago the abuse occurred. The Senate vote was a breakthrough moment, but the bill has since stalled in the House. That is where change often dies, in committee rooms, in procedural delays, in the slow grind of a system that always seems to find a reason to wait. We think we will eventually break through, but it might not be in 2025. But to give you some idea of our confidence level, our firm is getting calls from victims and signing them up even if they are well past the current statute of limitations.

The politics matter here, but the human reality matters more. Every year that passes without reform, survivors lose their chance to tell their story in court. The law effectively protects institutions, not children. Survivors should not assume they are out of time, because Michigan courts still recognize the discovery rule, and because legislative reform could change the whole ballgame soon. The truth is that many survivors who thought their claims were gone will, at some point, have options.

Abuse Victims Can Get Financial Compensation

Juvenile inmates at WSTC (or any other juvenile detention center in Michigan) can file civil lawsuits and get financial compensation for the emotional damage caused by the abuse. Facilities like WSTC have a legal duty to ensure that juvenile offenders at the facility are reasonably safe and not the victims of sexual abuse by staff or by other detainees. WSTC habitually breached this duty by failing to adequately protect detainees. This means that the company that owned and operated WSTC can be held liable for negligence in a sex abuse civil lawsuit.

How Much Money Can You Get from WSTC Sex Abuse Cases?

In 2024, the first of what is expected to be many civil lawsuits was filed against the Wolverine Secure Treatment Center (WSTC) on behalf of a group of former juvenile inmates. These lawsuits allege that WSTC failed to protect vulnerable juveniles from rampant sexual abuse perpetrated by its staff, individuals entrusted with their care and rehabilitation. WSTC had a legal and moral duty to ensure the safety of every child in its custody.

For victims seeking justice, the amount of settlement compensation they can recover in a lawsuit against WSTC or similar facilities depends on several factors:

Strength of Evidence: Cases with solid evidence—such as corroborating witnesses, prior complaints, or documentation—are typically worth more than those based solely on the victim’s testimony.
Severity of the Abuse: Prolonged, repeated, or particularly heinous acts of abuse often result in higher settlements or trial verdicts. Most of the settlements in these cases use a point system to calculate the severity of the injury based largely on how serious the abuse was.
Impact on the Victim: The psychological toll, such as PTSD, depression, anxiety, and physical injuries, plays a significant role in determining the settlement value.
Age of the Victim: Younger victims are often awarded higher compensation due to the profound and long-term effects on their development and life trajectory.
Statute of Limitations: Survivors of sexual abuse have historically faced strict deadlines to file lawsuits, forcing many to remain silent until it was too late. In 2025, a new law passed the Michigan Senate that eliminated these time limits. But the House has yet to take up the bill.

Will this long-overdue reform finally ensure that survivors of WSTC’s negligence receive the justice they deserve, or will systemic failures continue to protect the institution from accountability? The path forward is critical for every victim who was betrayed by those meant to protect them.

Example Wolverine Residential Treatment Center Sex Abuse Lawsuit

In a lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan this year, a former resident of Wolverine Human Services brought a sweeping civil rights complaint alleging systematic sexual, physical, and emotional abuse while in state-ordered custody as a juvenile. The facility, contracted by the State of Michigan to house and rehabilitate at-risk and adjudicated youth, is accused of enabling, covering up, and perpetuating a culture of abuse spanning years. The complaint names Wolverine Human Services, Wolverine Human Services, Inc., the Saginaw Intermediate School District (SISD), its Board of Education, and multiple unidentified staff members as defendants.

According to the lawsuit, the plaintiff was between 10 and 13 years old during his court-ordered placement at Wolverine’s Saginaw facility from approximately 2015 to 2019. He alleges that multiple staff members—identified by surname—repeatedly gang raped him, forced him to consume human feces, and tied him up and sexually assaulted him in secluded rooms on facility grounds. These alleged acts of extreme abuse occurred in a setting meant to offer rehabilitation and education under state oversight. The lawsuit claims the facility not only failed to prevent these atrocities but also allowed an environment where staff could act with impunity, shielded by negligent supervision and nonexistent reporting protocols.

The complaint brings 13 causes of action, including violations of Title IX, the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments, and federal civil rights law (42 U.S.C. § 1983). It also includes state claims such as gross negligence, intentional infliction of emotional distress, breach of fiduciary duty, and violations of the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act. Central to the case is the assertion that Wolverine functioned as a state actor, receiving public funding and carrying out court-mandated responsibilities, yet persistently failed to train staff, supervise operations, or protect vulnerable children from predictable and repeated abuse.

The plaintiff seeks compensatory and punitive damages exceeding $75,000, along with attorneys’ fees, injunctive relief, and a court order compelling the defendants to release records of prior abuse reports and comply with mandated child abuse reporting laws. The lawsuit paints a devastating picture of institutional betrayal in a facility entrusted with the safety of some of Michigan’s most vulnerable youth.

Contact Us About Wolverine Secure Treatment Center Sex Abuse Lawsuits

If you are thinking about bringing a sexual abuse lawsuit against a juvenile detention facility like the Wolverine Secure Treatment Center, we can help you. Contact our sex abuse lawyers today for a free consultation. Contact us online or call us at 800-553-8082.