The House of the Good Shepherd was founded in 1883 by the Sisters of the Good Shepherd in Detroit. The organization began as a safe haven for women and young girls in need of shelter, often due to abuse and poverty. The organization was relocated in 1942 when Clara Ford, a strong advocate for women’s and children’s causes, convinced her husband, Henry Ford, to deed the 50 acres of land on West Warren Avenue in Dearborn Heights to the Sisters of the Good Shepherd for $1. The facility was officially reopened as Vista Maria.

The number of residential treatment programs for women and girls in Michigan is scarce, and Vista Maria is now one of many that have closed across the state in recent years. In a recent Bridge Michigan investigation, an increased number of minors are sent out of the state for youth mental care. In Michigan, fewer than 400 beds are available in youth residential treatment facilities, down from about 1,200 since the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.

Over a year ago, Local 4 News began investigating Vista Maria. On April 13, a lawsuit was filed by former residents against Vista Maria alleging psychological and physical abuse. The lawsuit accused the staff at Vista Maria of sexual assault, forcing fights between residents, improperly administering psychiatric medications, unsafe conditions and negligence. According to Local 4 News, “All were placed there as minors, many through the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) and court orders, the suit said.”

Attorney for the plaintiffs, Moose Scheib from the Moose Law Firm, told Local 4 News, “We have now formally filed the initial complaint, which marks the beginning of what we expect will be a much broader case. The allegations laid out by these survivors are not isolated; they reflect a long pattern of abuse and systematic failure involving young women who were placed in an environment that was supposed to protect them.”

Six women allege that Vista Maria’s program amounted to a “House of Horrors” that enabled the staff to molest, assault, and even starve girls as young as 12 years old while in their care.

Sophia Knoblauch was a former resident named in the lawsuit who is now 18 and told Local 4 News, “We are quite actually survivors. There are girls who literally didn’t survive that place.”

Former Vista Maria resident Sarina Jensen told Local 4 News, “They just don’t care. They don’t. I’ve tried to kill myself so many times in there just because the staff treated us so horrible.” A sentiment that is mimicked by hundreds of former Vista Maria residents in the facility’s Google reviews. Julie Cummings posted, “I was here a couple of times back in 2005-2007 and it was a true nightmare. I still have actual nightmares from the trauma I endured in that place. I hope they shut down the whole campus!!! These girls deserve so much better. I was only a child.”

Another post by Roxxie Troutan states, “This place was a nightmare when I was there. The staff they hired should not have been there. Male staff praying on weak young girls is sickening. And just because a clear is called it doesn’t take the whole damn campus of staff to restrain one individual. I saw way too much, and encountered way too much. You go in with trauma and leave even more traumatized.”

Vista Maria was forced to close on Dec. 19, 2025, after state officials stopped referring girls earlier that year. Since then, survivors continue to come forward. Initially, there were six plaintiffs named in the lawsuit, and that number has grown to over 50 women who allege they were abused between 2000 and 2025.

If you or someone you know needs help, you are encouraged to call the national sexual assault hotline: 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).