Attorneys representing a teenage boy have filed a lawsuit against Camp SAYLA, a taxpayer-funded youth facility in Southeast Alabama. The lawsuit alleges the boy was subjected to “repeated physical, verbal, and emotional abuse by staff members and other residents.”
The complaint, filed in Henry County Circuit Court, marks the fourth lawsuit brought against Camp SAYLA by a team of lawyers who say the facility fostered a culture of systemic abuse and neglect.
“This is the fourth lawsuit we’ve filed against Camp SAYLA, and we’re not done,” said attorney Tommy James of Tommy James Law. “This place operated more like a torture chamber than a treatment facility. The public needs to know what was going on behind those locked doors, and every abuser and enabler needs to be held accountable.”
The plaintiff, who was 17 at the time, alleges he was beaten by Kenyatta Danzey, a former staffer. Danzey’s trial is set for 2026.
“Danzey regularly beat the Plaintiff and other children using broomsticks — often hitting them so hard that the broomsticks would break — as well as with fists and socks filled with potatoes,” the lawsuit reads.
According to the complaint, the teen was also denied food, forced to sleep on the floor in his underwear and humiliated in front of other children.
“What this child endured was torture, plain and simple,” James said. “And there were adults all around who allowed it to happen.”
The events alleged in the lawsuit occurred in 2020. Danzey was arrested in early 2024 and charged with 17 counts of child abuse.
The lawsuit describes additional incidents in which Danzey threw children into trash cans, dragged one from his bed at night to beat him in front of peers, and offered “bounties” for residents who assaulted each other.
“No child should ever fear for their life in a place that claims to help them,” said attorney Jeremy Knowles of Morris Haynes. “This boy wasn’t just failed, he was tormented by the very people trusted with his care. What he endured was not just abuse, it was betrayal.”
Camp SAYLA previously housed youth referred by juvenile courts, though the children were not under the custody of the Alabama Department of Youth Services. In 2024, a surprise inspection revealed unlivable conditions, prompting DYS to revoke the facility’s license. The license was later reinstated, but the facility is not currently in use.
James said the case reveals broader failures in Alabama’s oversight of residential youth facilities.
“Camp SAYLA is not an outlier; it is a symptom of a much bigger problem. Children are being warehoused, abused, and silenced in plain sight while the system looks the other way,” he said.
The lawsuit seeks compensatory and punitive damages but also to shed light on what the attorneys describe as a crisis in accountability. They are urging state leaders to strengthen licensing and monitoring of youth facilities before more children are harmed.
“This case isn’t just about one child; it’s about all of them,” James said. “And the message to every facility that thinks it can get away with it is simple: if you abuse children, we will come for you.”
