Lawsuit alleges decades of sexual abuse at former youth facility run by Huckabee associate Ted Suhl

BY Benjamin Hardy ON November 6, 2023. 10:42 pm



A federal lawsuit filed in Little Rock Monday against Ted Suhl, the former behavioral health services mogul convicted of bribing a state official but later set free by then-President Donald Trump, describes decades of alleged “systematic and widespread” child abuse by staff members at Suhl’s now-defunct Lord’s Ranch.

The abuse at the northeast Arkansas residential facility included “premeditated sexual abuse and child rape, often under threat of force; extreme physical violence and abuse resulting in serious injuries such as broken bones; and psychological manipulation and torment, such as isolation closets and straitjackets,” the 53-page complaint says. “The facility and its agents also engaged in concerted efforts to cover-up and conceal allegations of abuse. When victims reported abuse to other staff, the leadership at Lord’s Ranch either feigned concern while taking no action and allowing the abuse to continue or threatened the victims with reprisals should they report the abuse further,” according to the complaint.

The lawsuit was filed on behalf of eight anonymous male plaintiffs sent to the facility as minors in the 1990s and early 2000s. All were allegedly victimized by one senior staffer: Emmett Alden Presley, the director of social services at the Lord’s Ranch for many years.

Each of the “John Doe” plaintiffs recount similar stories of being forced to submit to oral sex performed by Presley, along with fondling and other coerced sexual acts. Presley allegedly held out the promise of gifts and benefits if boys submitted to his advances, such as food, clothing, cigarettes, pornography and the opportunity to drive his car. If they resisted, the complaint alleges, they would be threatened with beatings, isolation and having their ability to call home to their parents taken away.

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https://arktimes.com/arkansas-blog/2023/11/06/lawsuit-alleges-decades-of-sexual-abuse-at-former-youth-facility-run-by-huckabee-associate-ted-suhl