Sorensen's Ranch

[Anonymous]

wow the survivors were forced off myspace by a lawsuit..

LET'S CONTACT THE KIDS AND BRING THEM HERE

[Anonymous]

wow the survivors were forced off myspace by a lawsuit..

LET'S CONTACT THE KIDS AND BRING THEM HERE

The survivors of Sorenson's Ranch were forced off Myspace by a lawsuit by Sorenson's Ranch?

[Ursus]

From the Wiki:

In the news

In 2002 the Ranch won a suit against the State Department of Human Services. The son of the founders had received a conviction for two felonies in California before starting to work for the facility, which normally would prevent such a person from working with children, but the Ranch appealed and won in the local court [3].

Former survivors have been isolated to deal with their own torment after the facility filed a lawsuit against Myspace [4].

Reference [4], which is for the MySpace lawsuit, does not have a link attached.

[Anonymous]

L. Jay Mitchell started Sorenson's Ranch sometime ago didn't he?

I understand he sold it, but isn't this the guy who started SUWS in Idaho just a few years later? Also I think he is the SUWS of Carolina guy now too. I was told kids could beat up other kids who tried to run away from the program. This was in the 80's was it true?
It all does seem so familiar, I hate the places, I think he was working in programs when kids dies...more than once.

[Anonymous]

I have fixed the missing links with a little help from Covergaard and added the news about the runaways.

About the case

2 teens arrested after fleeing Sevier Country Group Home, DeseretNews, October 12 2007

So the wiki page should be updated now.

[Anonymous]

what is wron withSRS I was thinking os sending my child there please tell me  :-?

What's the prob? Why do you want to send him?

[TheWho]

I have fixed the missing links with a little help from Covergaard and added the news about the runaways.

About the case

2 teens arrested after fleeing Sevier Country Group Home, DeseretNews, October 12 2007

So the wiki page should be updated now.

Good job Wiki,  I think this shows that the programs need to do a better job at screening these kids prior to acceptance.  These two kids clearly did not belong there and were not willing (or ready) to do any of the work required.  They will be better off in the Juvenile facility somewhere until they get themselves straightened out.  Kids like this, running off and stealing cars just give the other kids at the Ranch a bad name in the eyes of the locals.


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[Botched Programming]

Kids like this, running off and stealing cars just give the other kids at the Ranch a bad name in the eyes of the locals.


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Or it shows what lengths those kids would do to get out of that place.

[TheWho]

Kids like this, running off and stealing cars just give the other kids at the Ranch a bad name in the eyes of the locals.


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Or it shows what lengths those kids would do to get out of that place.

These kids had a long history of stealing cars prior to attending Sorensons Ranch.  Maybe the ranch knew that when they were accepted there and thought they could help them and simply miscalculated their flight risk.  In any event the ranch wasnt the right place for them and they clearly were not ready to work.



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[Anne Bonney]

These kids had a long history of stealing cars prior to attending Sorensons Ranch.  Maybe the ranch knew that when they were accepted there and thought they could help them and simply miscalculated their flight risk.  In any event the ranch wasnt the right place for them and they clearly were not ready to work.



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So all the kids who attend Sorenson's want to be there and are 'ready to work'?  Funny, you've posted before at length about the need to forcibly 'treat' these kids.  Now all of a sudden when it doesn't suit your argument you change your tune.

Typical.

:roll:

[TheWho]

These kids had a long history of stealing cars prior to attending Sorensons Ranch.  Maybe the ranch knew that when they were accepted there and thought they could help them and simply miscalculated their flight risk.  In any event the ranch wasnt the right place for them and they clearly were not ready to work.



...

So all the kids who attend Sorenson's want to be there and are 'ready to work'?  Funny, you've posted before at length about the need to forcibly 'treat' these kids.  Now all of a sudden when it doesn't suit your argument you change your tune.

Typical.

:roll:

All kids need a push, Anne, I think that is an area where we can all agree.
I think if you took a poll, at the Ranch, you would find that none of the kids want to be there.  This place may be better than their next alternative… but with teenagers that goes without saying, if you walked into any high school and asked the kids to raise their hands if they wanted to go home you would probably get an overwhelming response.
But what all the kids have in common is the majority are willing and ready to work.  The two kids who took off obviously were not.


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[Anonymous]

well, did L. jay mitchell start this shitpit or not?

[Botched Programming]

These kids had a long history of stealing cars prior to attending Sorensons Ranch.  Maybe the ranch knew that when they were accepted there and thought they could help them and simply miscalculated their flight risk.  In any event the ranch wasnt the right place for them and they clearly were not ready to work.



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I do not agree with you on this. The kids may have had a prior history, however they were able to overcome the "Fear" of doing it to try to get to safety somewhere.

If you read the article, the kid who had called his friend asked him not to call the police as he knew he would be sent back and would more than likely have to pay some serious consequences for trying to escape.

[TheWho]

These kids had a long history of stealing cars prior to attending Sorensons Ranch.  Maybe the ranch knew that when they were accepted there and thought they could help them and simply miscalculated their flight risk.  In any event the ranch wasnt the right place for them and they clearly were not ready to work.



...

I do not agree with you on this. The kids may have had a prior history, however they were able to overcome the "Fear" of doing it to try to get to safety somewhere.

If you read the article, the kid who had called his friend asked him not to call the police as he knew he would be sent back and would more than likely have to pay some serious consequences for trying to escape.

Thats cool..  You are one of the few here on fornits who can disagree without name calling, thank you.  You make a good point I will reread the article.


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[Ursus]

"About the case" link expanded:

Sorenson's Ranch School v. MySpace
Posted November 16th, 2007 by dardia

Threat type:  Lawsuit
Date:  07/31/2006
Subject Area(s):  Anonymity, Defamation, Third-Party Content
======================================
Parties
Party Issuing Threat:  Sorenson's Ranch School; Shane Sorenson; Jill Sorenson
Type of Threatening Party:  Individual, School
Location of Party:  Utah

Party Receiving Threat:  MySpace, Inc.; John Does 1-10
Type of Threatened Party:  Individual, Intermediary
Location of Party:  Massachusetts
======================================
Status and Description
Status:  Concluded
Disposition:  Withdrawn
Verdict or Settlement Amount:
Description:
Sorenson's Ranch School, a rehabilitation center and school for troubled youths in Koosharem, Utah, along with two of its officers filed a defamation lawsuit against MySpace and 10 unknown John Doe defendants claiming that a MySpace page had been set up in which users criticized the school's operations (the page no longer exists).

In the suit, the school alleged that MySpace and some anonymous users published statements falsely indicating that the Sorensons engaged in child abuse, employed underqualified staff, and engaged in false advertising. The plaintiffs also claimed that the defendants used "vulgar and inappropriate language" and otherwise made defamatory statements regarding the school.

The suit asked for $125,000 in damages and an injunction against further publication of the defamatory comments.

There is no indication in the case docket that plaintiffs served MySpace with the complaint, and no defendant filed an answer. About four months after filing the complaint, with no further filings or motions occuring in the case, the plaintiffs filed a notice of voluntary dismissal.

Update:  12/15/06 - Order issued dismissing the case.
======================================
Court and Attorney Information
Court Type:  Federal
Location of Filing/Threat:  Utah
Court Name:  United States District Court for the District of Utah
Case Number:  2:06CV00632
Legal Counsel:  Ronald Barker (Plaintiff)
======================================
Details
Publication Medium:  Social Networking Site
Content Type(s):  Text
Legal Claims and Defenses:  Claims: defamation; injunction
Source of Law:  Utah
Web Sites Involved:  MySpace.com
Relevant Documents:
Complaint (07-31-2006)
Notice of Voluntary Dismissal (12-12-2006)
Order of Dismissal (12-15-2006)
Related Links:
MLRC's Legal Actions and Developments Involving Blogs
Sorenson's Ranch School website