The family of a young boy allegedly sexually assaulted at a residential psychiatric facility in the Pittsburgh area wants accountability.

Amy Mathieu represents the family of the minor suing Southwood Psychiatric Hospital in Upper St. Clair.

Court documents allege that in October 2023, the then-10-year-old boy was admitted to the facility due to suicidal ideations. The documents say that at first, he was placed in his own room, but after a few days, that changed.

"He was placed in a shared room with two other boys, and one of them sexually assaulted him in the middle of the night one of the nights," Mathieu said. "During that assault, no employees of Southwood walked by the room, none of them intervened."

According to the lawsuit, the door of the shared room was cracked open when the minor was forced to perform oral sex and raped. It also says that staff knew the alleged suspect was violent and a sexual deviant.

"This has had a tremendous effect on my client's well-being. His psychiatric treatment since then has increased. He's had to go back inpatient, and in doing so, he had to be sedated because he was so traumatized by being back in the same setting of a psychiatric hospital."

KDKA reached out to Southwood Psychiatric Hospital for comment, and it said it does not comment on pending litigation.

But in a statement to KDKA, it said, in part, that "the well-being and quality of care for those we serve are our highest priorities.  We take all concerns raised about the conduct and treatment of any individual in our care seriously -- and have established protocols to address such matters thoroughly."

Mathieu claims the facility put its clients in a dangerous situation and failed to protect them. 

"We are filing this lawsuit for two reasons. One is to get him the compensation he needs for treatment for the rest of his life, and the other is to hold the hospital accountable," Mathieu said. 

Mathieu told KDKA the minor is facing criminal charges for the assault.

• Allegheny County