KIDS of El Paso was a controversial rehabilitation program in West Texas that operated from 1986 to 1989, treating over 220 teenagers for substance abuse, behavioral issues, and eating disorders, although these conditions were never formally diagnosed.
The program employed highly confrontational attack therapy and coercive social conditioning techniques in peer-led group therapy sessions that lasted 12 to 14 hours a day. The treatment took place in a converted warehouse, isolated from families, the community, and legal oversight. The program's practices remained unknown until several teens escaped and exposed the methods used inside the facility. Reports of kidnapping, physical restraints, sexual humiliation, sleep deprivation, and malnutrition triggered an investigation by the State of Texas. As the controversy intensified, KIDS of El Paso was frequently in newspapers and on the evening news. The Texas State Attorney General characterized the program’s effects on El Paso teens as "terrorizing" and "brainwashing." Interviews with enrolled teens uncovered evidence of coercion, abuse, neglect, false imprisonment, and 56 violations of state regulations.
In June 1988, the State of Texas ordered the facility to close, but it reopened the following day and continued operations until prolonged legal battles depleted its finances, ultimately resulting in a Chapter 7 bankruptcy filing in October 1989. After the El Paso facility closed, the remaining teens were transferred to other KIDS locations, where controversial practices continued until 1998, when the last remaining facility was shut down.
Experts in cults and deprogramming have classified KIDS as a harmful rehabilitation cult with enduring traumatic effects on ex-participants. Many former teens from the program have died by suicide, while others report symptoms consistent with complex post-traumatic stress disorder.
Stories about KIDS have been featured on television programs such as Geraldo, Sally, Dr. Phil, The Doctors, and West 57th Street. Additionally, a documentary titled KIDS of El Paso: Teenage Mind Control Cult is in the early stages of production.
If you were in KIDS of El Paso and would like more information about the program, email [email protected].
