COBB COUNTY Ga. — Parents have concerns about patient safety at a mental health facility in Smyrna.
As of Feb. 18, 2025, Ridgeview Institute in Smyrna was at the center of at least seven open sex crime investigations, according to the Smyrna Police Department.
Police reports describe patients accusing other patients of rape, sodomy, and fondling.
The ages of those involved range from 13 to 62.
“You think you can trust this place because you hear these places are going to help them get through the emotions that they’re experiencing,” one mother told Channel 2′s Courtney Francisco.
She asked not to share her name to protect her teenage daughter’s privacy, but said her child’s two-day stay there was horrifying.
“Now, she’s dealing with more trauma,” the mother said.
Police data shows 21 calls for service related to sex crime accusations at Ridgeview from Jan. 2024 to Feb. 12, 2024.
Fourteen of those resulted in case investigations.
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Seven of the 14 are closed for reasons such as lack of evidence or lack of victim cooperation.
One of the seven closed cases ended in a teenage patient’s arrest, police say.
One of the seven open cases is classified as rape. Two are classified as sodomy. Two are classified as fondling and one is classified as simple battery.
The victims in the seven open cases are ages 13, 15, 15, 13, 28, 34, and 44.
Suspect ages in those open cases are 13, 15, 16, 17, 34, and 62.
Ridgeview Institute did not respond to requests to comment.
Smyrna Police Department said all the reports came from the families of patients, not Ridgeview staff members.
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