“Alegend, a 17-year-old female, was told to remove her clothes while she was at the health department. She did not want to take off her clothes in front of two male counselors,” said family attorney Ben Crump. He alleges 12 male counselors beat the teen.
The mother of a teenage sexual assault survivor who died in a Tennessee group home claims that counselor's assaulted her daughter before her death.
Shona Garner said at a news conference on Wednesday that she sent Robshekaneciona Alegend Jones, 17, to the nonprofit organization Youth Villages to get help after the teenager was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, manic depression, and bipolar disorder due to a sexual assault that occurred when she was a child.
The teenager's father had also recently committed suicide, said her mother.
"And they sent my baby back to me in a casket," said Garner.
There are many unanswered questions about what happened on the day Jones died said her mother, who claims that Youth Villages has refused to answer her questions about her daughter's death.
Garner said witnesses told her that police were called after a counselor "body slammed" Jones when she refused to undress in front of the men during an appointment at the office of the Shelby County Health Department.
The family is now being represented by civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who appeared alongside her at the new conference on Wednesday.
“Alegend, a 17-year-old female, was told to remove her clothes while she was at the health department. She did not want to take off her clothes in front of two male counselors,” said Crump.
Things allegedly got worse after that according to Crump.
"It is alleged that over a dozen counselors at Youth Villages assaulted and battered this teenage child," said Crump. "We don't know if there's video that captured the interactions between the counselors, who were supposed to be trained to deal with troubled youth, and this teenager, Shona's baby. But what we do know is whatever transpired ended up with the neurologists telling Shona that they believed the cause of death is that she died from a brain bleed."
The lawyer also said that witnesses told him that Jones had been "brutally assaulted, battered and choked" before being transported to the hospital where she died.
Crump said that Jones suffered a brain bleed from extensive trauma. The Shelby County Medical Examiner has not yet publicly released the autopsy results.
Her mother said she eventually had to take her daughter off life support.
“I wasn’t ready to pull the plug, but when I seen her brain coming out of her eyes, I said it’s time for my baby to go,” said Garner on Wednesday.
“The details surrounding Alegend's death are both shocking and heartbreaking. No family should have to endure the pain of losing a child under such horrific circumstances,” said Crump in a statement. “We demand a thorough and impartial investigation into the events that led to Alegend's tragic death, including the public release of any and all footage from the Youth Villages. Her family deserves answers and justice, and we will continue to work on their behalf to ensure that those responsible for these heinous acts are held accountable.”
The Tennessee Department of Children’s Services confirmed on Thursday that they have opened an investigation, saying: "The Department of Children’s Services is saddened any time there is loss of life involving a youth. We can confirm an investigation has commenced in this case, and we are working alongside our law enforcement partners."
Garner also said on GoFundMe that the agency agreed to cover the expenses of her daughter's funeral.
Youth Villages meanwhile is denying Crump and the family's allegations in a statement obtained by Inside Edition Digital.
"Many of the statements and comments circulating publicly about this incident are false and inaccurate," said a spokesperson for the home.
"When the child exhibited symptoms of a medical emergency, our staff immediately responded following our protocols for emergency medical intervention. Emergency Medical Services (EMS) was also called and arrived onsite within minutes," reads the statement. "The child was taken to the hospital where she later passed away."
The statement goes on to say that "there were no abusive or otherwise inappropriate interactions directed toward the young person" and that "the young person was brought to the health department by two female staff and was never alone with male staff or asked to disrobe in front of male staff."
The Shelby County Health Department also released a statement that read in part: "All Shelby County Health Department services are provided with the consent of patients. Patients must consent to any physical examination or treatment, and they are never required to remove clothing against their will. Any insinuation that any service would be provided in violation of the patient’s will and consent is inconsistent with SCHD’s core values and policies."
