Family sues assisted-living facility

WALLER COUNTY, TX The lawsuit centers on a policy adopted back in 2008 by the executive director. The family of the victim says it led to X-rated scenes in public areas and eventually the sexual assault of their daughter, also a patient.

Fifty miles west of Houston in San Felipe is Willow River Farms, a 300-acre facility that cares for people suffering from mental retardation and other developmental disabilities. It's not a place parents of one former resident expected hear about group sex among patients.

"According to former employees, they described the facility as one big orgy, after a new policy was implemented," said attorney John Ramsey.

And a lawsuit by the victim's family says that new policy, adopted back in 2008 by the current executive director, allows patients to have sex whenever they please. They are also not to be interrupted unless they got too noisy.

The victim's family says that as a result of the new policy, residents at the cottage-style facility, "began engaging in sexual intercourse not only in their bedroom, but also in public areas around the facility."

Even worse, the family says, "It appears that many residents would gather in groups and have sex with multiple partners at the same time."

Eyewitness News contacted Willow River Farms for comment, but our calls were not returned.

And now the victim, a 42-year-old mentally retarded woman with the mind of toddler, the family claims eventually became a victim of the promiscuous policy when she was assaulted by another patient.

"She is severely mentally retarded and she was raped, sexually assaulted by a fellow resident," said Ramsey.

The family claims long before the policy, they gave explicit instructions to Willow River Farms to keep their daughter away from more mentally advanced patients out fear someone could take advantage of her.

"What they didn't do was protect the more vulnerable residents there, who were not advanced enough to make those decisions," said Ramsey.

The family of the woman is now suing for unspecified damages and as of now, their daughter is no longer a resident at Willow River Farms and is being cared for by her parents.

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