Teen sneaks into 14-year-old’s tent and rapes her at youth camp, Missouri lawsuit says
Two parents filed a lawsuit against a Missouri youth organization, saying negligence led to the “violent rape” of their 14-year-old daughter during a summer camping trip led by the group.
The lawsuit, filed Jan. 16 in St. Louis County, names The Wyman Center, Inc. and 12 employees as defendants.
According to the lawsuit, the incident occurred during a youth leadership camp organized by The Wyman Center in June.
In a statement to McClatchy News, the organization said staff “immediately notified the families of those involved, engaged appropriate government authorities, and are cooperating with the investigation.”
During the camp, the group took a trip to the Shawnee National Forest and Devil’s Kitchen Lake, court records say.
On the bus ride there, a boy about 14 years old sexually assaulted a minor camper “in plain view of the staff,” then tried to sexually assault the plaintiff’s daughter, the lawsuit states.
During the trip, the lawsuit says campers were ordered to set up tents with no “meaningful” separation by gender, with boys’ and girls’ tents next to each other and no staff tent as a barrier.
The parents said the 14-year-old boy entered their daughter’s tent after “lights out,” raped her in front of another camper, and stayed in her tent until morning, according to the lawsuit.
No “night checks” were done, violating Wyman’s policies, the lawsuit alleges.
After learning of the assault, Wyman staff failed to immediately call the police or the girl’s parents and did not remove the boy from the program, according to the lawsuit.
“Wyman promptly engaged an internal investigation including a review of the processes used on the day in question,” a spokesperson said in an email to McClatchy News. “Wyman has deep concerns regarding this event and is committed to taking any appropriate steps to ensure the well-being of the young people they serve.”
The lawsuit states The Wyman Center was sued for “nearly identical conduct” in the past and that information was withheld from parents during an open house before enrollment.
Attorneys representing the family argue Wyman was negligent in its practices and hiring, creating an unsafe environment with staff who were “unfit to adequately” care for campers.
The family is seeking over $25,000 in damages, records show.
According to the Eureka organization’s website, The Wyman Center offers “programs that help young people build life and leadership skills, establish healthy behaviors and relationships, and achieve educational and career success.”
Eureka is about a 30-mile drive southeast from St. Louis.
This story was originally published February 3, 2025 at 3:32 PM with the headline "Teen sneaks into 14-year-old’s tent and rapes her at youth camp, Missouri lawsuit says."
