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By KAREN NELSON
Posted on Thu, Nov. 04, 2004
Sun Herald
PASCAGOULA - The parents or guardians of eight former students of Bethel Boys Academy in Lucedale filed a federal suit this week against the owners and employees, alleging a wide range of abuse, fraud and negligence.
The 42-page lawsuit is full of specific and graphic instances of abuse of the boys, whose tenure at the academy ranged from a few hours or days to eight months in 2002 and 2003.
Arkansas attorney Oscar Stilley is representing the families, all from states other than Mississippi, who placed their sons in the Lucedale boarding school which has a history of students alleging abuse but also has a history of support from the Lucedale community.
There also have been at least three publicized investigations by state agencies. But last week, the state Department of Human Services interviewed students at Bethel and found no wrongdoing at the school.
In August of 2003, after some of Stilley's clients left the school, it was investigated and agreed to report to the state under a consent decree and to have the court appoint a monitor.
Cheryle Strueble of Nebraska is among the parents suing. She said she pulled her son out after three days in May 2003. He had bruises and a black eye.
She said she retrieved the $25,000 she paid the school, but that she and other parents decided to file a lawsuit after their reports to the state Attorney General's Office, the state Department of Human Services and the state Health Department did not result in criminal charges.
Stilley said he found only one other case of a suit against the school.
Stilley's suit, which represents only one side of the issue, breaks out each boy's story and paints a picture of systematic fraud by the owners and staff, deceit, violence, inhumane treatment, ridicule, torture, beatings, unsafe living conditions and psychological abuse.
"The treatment that they afford kids there is so atrocious that it cost me sleep," Stilley said Wednesday, "and I don't like that."
He said he heard highly consistent versions of events from more than 10 children and their parents.
The academy was established by Herman Fountain decades ago and revamped under the leadership of his son.
The suit names Herman, John and Josh Fountain and nine employees.
When contacted Wednesday, Herman Fountain said he has not been involved in the operation of the boarding school in more than a year and when questioned about the allegations and the suit, he repeatedly said he did not want to talk about the case and did not care.
In the past, the Fountains have said allegations of abuse come from unruly and disgruntled kids who are fighting discipline.
On Tuesday, academy director John Fountain told The Clarion-Ledger: "These are low-income families who want something for nothing."
Stilley said the boys he represents were not violent or mean, but rather teenagers who were using marijuana, not listening to their parents and not doing well in regular school.
He said one of his clients wanted to go to Bethel because it was billed as a military school and he planned to go into the military as a career.
But Stilley said that as part of his punishment at the school for an infraction was to be confined to a foot locker for 10 to 14 hours and not allowed out to go to the bathroom.
According to the suit, student Josh Lawrence was hit on the foot with a golf club and the wound was untreated until his parents pulled him from the school. His broken nose went untreated.
He was held down by cadets as a bottle of dripping water was hung above his head by staff members, the suit said.
The water hit him continuously right above his nose, causing him to feel like he was drowning. He had his teeth knocked out by another cadet while staff watched.
And he was told repeatedly that his parents knew of his treatment and condoned it.
The suit states that he did not attend classes while at Bethel.
According to the suit, the defendants earn well over $1 million annually, "little or none of which is used for bona fide religious or charitable purposes."