Office Of Child Advocate Claims Abuse At Sununu Youth Services Center, Seeks State Investigation

By PAULA TRACY, InDepthNH

CONCORD, NH — The state's child advocate has notified the New Hampshire Executive Council of abuse she said her office has documented at the Sununu Youth Services Center in Manchester, which includes a child's broken arm and being held down for three and a half minutes and other reports of extended lock downs there this winter.

Cassandra Sanchez, child advocate, wrote that "video footage confirmed the use of physical restraint without imminent risk of harm to the child or others present, and holding the child down in an illegal prone position for approximately three and one half minutes. Documentation also showed a delay in medical care provided for the broken bone."

She said this is in violation of state law on such restraint and she has filed an abuse complaint with the Department of Health and Human Services' Division for Children Youth and Families.

Executive Councilor Karen Liot Hill, D-Lebanon, said the letter calls for an immediate response from the Department of Health and Human Services and is of grave concern.

She noted that given the amount of litigation the state is facing from previous allegations of child physical and sexual abuse at the former Youth Development Center, the state needs to be particularly attentive to these allegations.

The March 30, 2026, letter entitled, "Concern for Practices at the Sununu Youth Services Center" which Liot Hill shared with InDepthNH.org Thursday, documents that on March 9 the OCA received a call from a child placed at SYSC and the following day, March 10, Assistant Child Advocate Jason Taylor met with the child.

In the days following, Sanchez wrote that there were additional calls of concerns from professionals worried about the safety of the children there.

A call to the Health and Human Services Department related to the letter did not receive an immediate response.

The mission of the Sununu Youth Services Center in Manchester is to "work together as a team to provide safety, support, and treatment to the youth in our care to build a better life.

"John H. Sununu Youth Services Center is a 24-hour secure treatment facility that offers intensive treatment for New Hampshire’s detained and committed youth, both male and female, ages 13 to 17.

"The program encompasses education, residential unit life, permanency planning, as well as clinical treatment services. The goal at SYSC is to provide youth with ongoing assessment of their needs and strengths, as well as comprehensive mental health treatment. Treatment focuses on stabilization, mitigation of risk, and preparing youth for a successful return to the community, with reunification as a primary goal."

The Sununu Youth Services Center is administered by the New Hampshire Division for Children, Youth, and Families.

The Office of the Child Advocate is an independent, impartial and confidential state agency mandated to provide oversight to the state's child serving systems.

Sanchez is in a holdover position awaiting Republican Gov. Kelly Ayotte's nomination of a replacement.

She wrote that an unannounced visit by the child advocate was undertaken March 13 including herself and Assistant Child Advocate Jen Jones.

There were 15 children at the facility at the time, she wrote, and after talking with the children confidentially one-on-one and staff, "consistent messaging" revealed that "lockdown status was in place at the facility for approximately a month and a half; that there was an initial full lock down for two weeks which means only one child was out of their sleeping quarters at a time and they were shackled to walk around and no education was provided. Once full lockdown was over, there was restricted status that remained, allowing for only one hour of off-unit education daily and 30 minutes of gym time/recreation time daily. One meal a day was provided off unit, the remainder of which were eaten on unit in a manner reserved for those thought to be in imminent danger to themselves or others, minimal mixing of units allowed during school, gym/recreation time, and when eating a meal in the cafe. In the cafe there is only socializing with peers at the same table."

Sanchez alleges in the letter the children were not given adequate education time, no outdoor time was allowed, and staff requests for such were denied.

"One staff member was allowed to open a door and let children take turns standing inside the threshold of the door to get fresh air on their faces," the letter said.

The children could not watch television during schools hours so they sat and stared at the same four walls for hours on end; they had playing cards and one unit had a board game, this was the only entertainment allowed during school time hours 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on weekdays, it stated.

They could not do anything independently, Sanchez wrote, and could not even get water or use the restroom without asking staff. She wrote the only positive note from the children was access to clinical services and continued support from the clinical team.

Sanchez said the new director at SYSC "makes promises but does not follow through," such as bringing school days back and a child would be moved from a unit where they felt safe.

It included quotes from the children who said "We are all in jail now," "I am going to crash out soon if we stay in lockdown," "I don't feel like I can trust staff" and "this isolation is making me depressed."

Sanchez said she immediately reached out to state DCYF Director Marie Noonan on March 13 and held a meeting March 17 and that led to a follow up meeting with the new Director of SYSC, Joshua Nye which was scheduled for March 25.

Sanchez said her department was told that the children were returned to their full-time school schedule on March 16.

On March 19, Sanchez wrote the OCA received an additional complaint about improper use of physical restraint which led to a child injury on March 17 which was reported to Noonan, DCYF Director Ross and SYSC Bureau Chief Nye during the March 25 meeting.

The OCA reviewed video footage and compared what was observed with state law limiting the use of child restraint practices in schools and treatment facilities in RSA 126:U.

"The initial documentation was completed incorrectly; therefore the OCA had to point to missing critical information and request the forms be updated to reflect accurate information about the incident."

She wrote that the OCA has filed an abuse and neglect report with the DCYF Central Intake due to concerns for excessive restraint leading to a broken bone, which will be investigated by the DCYF Special Investigations Unit.

"The office of the Child Advocate continues to exercise heightened oversight at this facility due to the serious nature of the concerns," Sanchez wrote to councilors.

On Dec. 17, 2025, HHS Commissioner Lori Weaver asked the council to place Joshua Nye at an advanced pay step for the position of Bureau Chief of Secure Treatment Services at the Sununu Center at $106,654 with an effective start date of January 23.

"The SYSC Bureau Chief provides overall leadership to the facility and is responsible for programs relating
to adjudicated and detained Juveniles, including multidisciplinary residential, educational and clinical
programs designed to rehabilitate youth. The Bureau Chief is responsible for overseeing the building and
opening of a new secure treatment facility, guiding all operational and programmatic changes, and directing all related communications, as well as establishing a positive ongoing relationship with families, regulatory agencies, the community and community-based programs relating to the juvenile population supported at the Center.

"Joshua Nye has over 25 years of experience in clinical settings, in both direct care and executive leadership roles, where he has overseen the development and implementation of innovative clinical programs in community based and secure treatment environments. He has dedicated his career to serving vulnerable populations including children, youth, and families. Mr. Nye holds a bachelor's degree from Suffolk University and master's degree from Assumption College," Weaver wrote.

This article first appeared on InDepthNH.org and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.