The Lost Promise of Refuge Ranch - Christian activists brought concerns about sex trafficking to prominence in Texas and then failed the survivors they sought to help ( www.texasobserver.org )

In January 2023, about 10 months after it was forced to close, the Refuge reached a settlement with [the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC)] that allowed it to reopen on probation. The conditions included implementing a reopening plan, monthly team meetings to evaluate the program’s compliance and efficacy, and a more robust screening and selection process for new hires.

In a statement on the Refuge’s blog, Crowder wrote that the “false allegations” had nearly bankrupted the nonprofit and vowed to reopen—and stay open. “We intend to emphasize the lessons learned from the process, work cooperatively with our state agency partners, and keep our eyes trained on the future,” she wrote in an entry that was later deleted.

While the Refuge was able to get its license restored, records from HHSC show the program was cited for more than 50 violations between 2018 and 2022, more than a dozen of which were incidents categorized as “highly concerning.”

What’s more, the Refuge apparently failed to report other incidents that are described in reports obtained through public records requests or in interviews with former employees.

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The myriad issues at the Refuge Ranch raise larger questions about the quality of the state’s efforts to serve sex trafficking victims through residential treatment. Several costly residential treatment programs, the Refuge included, have left survivors with inadequate care and more traumatic experiences than they came in with, the survivors say. The saga of the Refuge is an example of one of the ambitious efforts in this niche world of advocacy that have faltered or failed in Texas, including others led by faith-based idealists.