Wow, hearing that woman describe how she made her imaginary friend leave because she was so humilated absolutely broke my heart. I cam't imagine making a CHILD feel like that. Humans never cease to amaze me with the level of heinous cruelty that they're capable of inflicting.
And she was visually impaired too, which broke my heart for her even more. There is a special place in hell for anyone who abuses a child or a person with special needs. These people did it in one fell swoop. 😢
'Troubled teen" wilderness camps should be shut down and thr people who participated in the abuse should be criminally charged. Or at the minimum the places all need to be reformed and be run by actual qualified medical professionals. This stuff is still going on to this day, mainly in Utah and Idaho
Make sure to watch some wholesome content from time to time, to remind you that humans are capable of all things up and down the spectrum. We can be the most amazing, thoughtful and empathetic creatures, then the next day be the most awful vile person ever. The only real way to stop that from happening is to abolish freedom tho. So... cheers, we're all in this long ride together, crazy, or not.
@@SJ-ni6iywhy? Investigated, sure. But not every parent is complicit or to blame for their child's actions...this particular parent lost her daughter at the hands of her son, and has gone no contact in order to protect her 3rd child...she's suffered too 🤦♀️
The whole "why aren't we doing something about this?? Oh cause we can't? That fucking sucks" is part of the reason I can't watch a lot of these. It just makes me angry and then it's depressing.
Respect to Dave. What a chad. Escaped, meets a veteran in the woods where he lives for 2 years. Veteran teaches him how to live and fend for himself out there. And Dave, now old, and a Biker Dude, teaches others the same.
Honestly it’s a great feeling when you meet someone like that i remember meeting a local biker and he found out about me being bi and he was honestly the nicest person Ive met and keep mind he’s this massive manly bigger guy beard and all
Forreal. Sticks and Dave were fuckin badasses. And to know Dave actually made it and teaches others is a very slim, but incredibly bright, silver lining in this horrific story of child abuse and evil. Let's all aspire to be like Sticks and Dave.
"The cops didn't do shit. They chalked it up to Johnny being a run away" Yep, sounds about right. In the early 90s we lived in a nice neighborhood. One day my mom was watering the plants & the neighbor girl 2 houses down was playing outside by herself. A green stationwagon pulls up & the guy starts talking to the neighbor girl. Mom jumps into action. Yells at the guy & grabs the girl & runs into her house to her parents. Guy peels off. Mom calls the cops, & gives them the license plate etc. Nothing ever came of it. Mom calls her mother later on & tells her about the ordeal. My Gran then tells my mom "Why would you do that? Why would you get involved? It's none of your business." Who did my Gran work for? The county sheriff. Lost A LOT of respect for my Gran after hearing about that.
@@demonheadxx4410 She actually questioned herself for a long time after what my Gran said to her. I looked at her & said "Fuck Granny! You did the right thing" We all still keep in contact with the neighbor girl & her family.
damn. your mum was 100000% in the right!!!!! “The only thing necessary for evil to triumph in the world is that good (wo)men do nothing”@@TwiggyHetfield27
Unfortunately, your gran's reaction was probably based on the potential that now your family might be targeted. You've gotta consider that the people who are bold enough to just farm selections from, as you put it, a "nice neighborhood" have a lot of power and leverage. Otherwise they'd pick up someone who's from a shitty neighborhood, or are an actual runaway. Corruption comes from various levels and in various forms. So for all your gram knew, anyone she worked with could be in on the human trafficking. That's how corruption works. Infect the system, and strike fear in the hearts of the just in order to keep them in line. Your mom's a hero for sure. But your gran isn't necessarily a villain for probably being scared. It's a fucked up world we live in.
One of the biggest things that killed me about Elan was a pair of escapees - three people I've heard of made an escape; a minor that wasn't named, Brad Glickman and Dawn Birnbaum. The unnamed child was picked up by a cop and taken home after telling him what happened but Dawn and Brad, those poor kids, Brad was shot dead after making it to a residence and Dawn was picked up by a trucker before being raped and murdered by said trucker, really just out of the frying pan and into the fire.
@@gaminganimators7000Dawn's murder, James Robert Cruz Jr, was sentenced to life in prison. Brad was accidentally shot and the man who did it, Roy O'Hara, was convicted of manslaughter, though his conviction was partially overturned 3 years later.
@criptastical I do have to feel bad for brad however I really can't blame Roy that much, someone arrives on his property in bumfuck nowhere in the middle of the night
@@burgessballenas9332nah. She went no contact with him. From her social media in 2021: I completely walked away from my eldest child and have not looked back. It is one thing to be a child who makes horrible decisions. It is another thing altogether to be a 27-year-old man and keep making decisions that put your family at risk. The final straw was learning he was "involved" with a woman who lived 2 hours away from us and was out on bond for planning a mass shooting. Boundaries had been crossed too many times. I bought a gun, learned to shoot (I am REALLY good now), and said goodbye. I finally accepted it is okay to love him as my son, but really dislike the man he has become.
I remember Wendigoon's spectacular video covering Johnny's disappearance in regards to how it led to the Missing Children's Milk Carton Program, and all the problems that came from it. I believe in that video he also mentioned something about how, when adult Johnny showed up at his mother's house, it's widely accepted that it wasn't actually Johnny. Just someone playing a prank on his devastated mother and she fully believed it even years after. Although it's impossible to know for sure, it was just a tragic story all around.
(Holy shit, my favorite HTTYD creator also watches my favorite “disturbing content” creator?! What is this, a crossover episode?) It’s so weird how this is a common occurrence. Whether it’s a prank or just a way for some loser to get some attention, idk. It’s a phenomenon that’s completely unimaginable for me. Just so sick.
What bothers me about that is that - whether or not it was actually Johnny - why the Hell would his mother allow him to leave? This was her son, someone she hadn't seen him in so many years, had no idea where he was or what he had been through, and just allows him to go - with her reasons being she was happy/assured he's fine. As awful as it sounds, I hope that was a fever dream/hallucination on her part because if it actually happened, it is beyond messed up. If it were my kid that suddenly shows up after disappearing years prior, that kid wouldn't be out of my sight for a second after reuniting.
As someone in my masters, for social work, I am absolutely horrified, but I am not surprised at how these so-called institutions treat its clients who are not only vulnerable but desperately need help. It’s disgusting.
dude i went to the ward once and my family tried to convince me i needed long term treatment. NOPE! big super large nope! basically baby jail with absolutely no resources or structure. hell naw count me tf out 😂
@@jaydetbh Jesus I’m so sorry. I was almost committed once when I was in my teens because my mental illness just hit me like a ton of bricks. I knew that the institutions around me, which was Pilgrim State (a notorious mental health institution in NY) was like prison. I could NOT.
@@rhiannajd4412it sounds very much like a rehab I stayed at in the late 80's. The punishments were so similar to what GG discussed in his video. The reasons used were mostly around breaking you down completely to then build you up from the beginning. Unfortunately, humans, particularly ones who've survived the process and are not used to any form of power or respect can be very willing to enforce said "treatment" with much verve and enjoyment. You had your head shaved and made to wear a jumpsuit,as tho you were in a prison,not a place of help and healing. Oh, and one of their main punishments was being made to stand in front of a mirror, chanting why you were worthless and deserved everything coming your way, and I'm talking hours of this at a time.
@@INSOMNIAREX god I am so so incredibly sorry. Clearly demonstrates how mental health “reforms” haven’t done what they’ve promised to do if they’re applicable today.
Also in my masters for social work here! And yeah its absolutely awful. My clients in my internship tend to be older adults and the stories they tell break my heart
One note about Vera's case is that they were all inbred and that the whole relationship and pregnancy was all due to Cheri wanting a daughter... I know a lot of true crime channels have covered Vera's is the only reason I know. The whole case is incredibly heart breaking and hearing about how many times she should have been saved is enraging. The mom is named Cheri Brooks who caused the brutal murder of Vera Jo Reigle.
Unfortunately, Elan isn't unique when it comes to abusive juvenile facilities. I've been covering 2 here in Florida on my blog & was actively involved in the investigation into them.They made national news when a number of kids were found buried in unmarked graves. That campus ran from 1901 to 2011 before finally being shut down, several years AFTER those remains were found. The other campus is still in operation today. It's so disgusting.
Yup the "troubled teen" camp industry is still alive and making billions today using the same techniques to abuse and traumatise vulnerable children. If they get closed down they just move to another state with lax laws and regulations. Utah, Florida and Texas are hot spots.
I think I've read stories about those on Reddit from former residents/survivors... Ah yea, Dozier School for Boys, I checked your blog. Heartbreaking and rage-inducing... Are you active on Reddit?
I was trafficked as a child, causing me to lash out at puberty and my teens. Nothing TOO crazy mind you...Staying at my friend's home late, having boyfriends (but not being too sexually active because of my history...), smoking the devil's lettuce, and worst of all...some pretty bad self harm. So clearly, just a menace to society lol. The worst "trouble" I got in was being driven home by a cop because I was walking home at 3 AM. But my mother is an alcoholic narcissist. My rich step famoly wanted to send me to Elan as a black-haired teen with ptsd from monstrous sex abuse is apparently too embarrassing for their high-society lives. Had I been sent to one of those places, I wouldn't be alive today. I know that in my heart. I dealt with heroin addiction (8 years clean next March) and still have ptsd and clinical depression. Sweeping kids that have suffered at the hands of (mostly) adults they trusted to a place to be abused further...yeah....I'm not surprised most of the alumni are addicts, imprisoned, or dead. I just finished giving a victim impact statement because some prick was found with...certain materials...containing me. I've known most my life it was out there. It pops up occasionally. Knowing that monster is spending his life in a prison as a p3d0phile makes my heart lift. He's already in his 60s and he recieved 80 years. My boyfriend took me out to a nice dinner when the verdict was read. My life is good. I'm happy. And it's no thanks to those kinds of facilities.
Im glad things turned out well in the end!! I'm so sorry about everything that happened. please continue to take care of yourself, never forget to do it, your safety and happiness are the most important thing.
You are so fucking strong. you have lived through a type of hell that most people couldn’t imagine, and every day that you’re alive is a testament to your resilience and your ability to survive. You should be proud of the person that you are, and the person that you’ve become. You may not be a perfect person, but you have put in hours, days, months, and years of work and effort into yourself and making the most of your life, and that is something that you should be proud of. You certainly don’t need encouragement from an internet stranger of all people, but know that someone out there is rooting for you. Rooting for your success and continued happiness, and although I do not know you, I have boundless pride and hope for you. Hugs from a stranger
I don't think I've ever heard a story to break my heart in the way that Vera's did. The fact that not only was her family horrid to her, but the fact that law enforcements had so many opportunities to maybe save her is gut wrenching.I don't think I've ever been so viscerally disgusted as I am with how Vera was treated. May God rest her soul.
No, cause it wasn't even HER family. The fat lady convinced Vera to live with her messed up family. She literally just wanted an incubator and someone to abuse for entertainment.
I mean where the hell was her original family? How are you going to leave your mentally handicapped child just shack up with some random family and get knocked up and shit? Absolutely everyone fuckin failed that girl. The whole thing is revolting. I’m into horror, but that’s some of the scariest shit I’ve ever heard of.
I think that family is being protected by dark forces in the government for some unknown reason. Maybe they are up to secret shinanigans like ‘C Traffickers’
My sister is intellectually disabled in an extremely similar way to Vera. I've never heard her case before and it fucking broke me. The thought of someone treating my sister in that same way... I can't even imagine, it makes me so infuriated. Rest easy sweet Vera, you deserved so much better ♥️
I hate that I so often hear of people with intellectual disabilities taking advantage of like used for free labour, used sexually, scammed from their money. And specially if the person is also e and doesn't have people who care and actually look after them, they just look after friends and someone who cares and then get taken advantage of. It makes me specially angry when the most vulnerable people are taken advantage of.
My uncle was intellectually challenge and my momma and I took care of him after my grandma died. He was the happiest and best man I knew. That story broke me.
The story of Vera is so so sad and sick... How do people like Cheri exist? Thanks for spreading the word. I don't think I could stomach watching it. It was hard enough just hearing the cliffs notes version.
Personality disorders. People like this and their victims are much more common than people think, but you only hear about maybe a 1/4th of the ones that die, and none of the ones that survive.
I am a rape survivor, and while being questioned in the process of legal matters they didnt focus on what happened to me at all, what they did focus on was the fact I had sex toys. Which for some reason means I was a liar? its honestly just messed up, the victim is never the victim in these situations. Investigators will focus on the dumbest most unnecessary things
100% agree Ive talked to a few victims and the way they describe how authorities treated them it’s just so wrong, hopefully things are better for you now and best of wishes
I was raped and the thing that got focused on was we were drinking. Not that I said no multiple times and asked him to leave. They just sit there and fucking judge you, like excuse me for speaking up for myself? Sorry for being an adult who just wanted to hang with a co-worker I thought was a cool person? It took me so long to get over my fear of police that there are a few times I should have called them but just avoided it at all costs. Thankfully the place I live now has the best freaking police. They are very kind and empathetic, and they were able to send caseworkers with them most of the times I called, if not immediately they managed to at some point. Even knowing all that, still sometime struggle to call. I wish they understood how truly traumatizing it is to have that interaction with them.
Unfortunately, that type of thing seems to be the norm. I had a history of drug use years before I was Ra*ped and all they kept asking me about was if I was using again and could be misremembering, even though they had the results of a drug test in the kit. They're disgusting.
My partner faced abuse as a child. Years and years of it, not old enough to know what it even was. After realizing what was wrong and trying to tell someone, nothing happened. A YEAR later they did something about it, and he only got charged for four out of the EIGHT years of abuse. Truly, this is America.
Note for the first doc... I have two theories for why they pulled that heel turn at the end: 1: People who suffer abuse often try to rationalize their abuse as having a 'meaning', a 'purpose'. Speaking from personal experience, because it's easier to have a 'silver lining or positive outcome of the abuse' to point to rather than the callous reality that cruelty doesn't need a reason and it doesn't have a silver lining. Especially for kids, they can rationalize the experience as being something 'worth experiencing even if it was painful' because that idea provides a very twisted sense of solace and hope. I.E "Sure my dad beat me but it taught me discipline." or "Yeah I got screamed at a lot but only because I was being bad, without it I would still be bad." It's important to remember that kids are not working with a fully grown brain nor the necessary context in most cases to fully understand what is being done to them let alone that it is the abuser's fault, not theirs. Even after they grow into adults those early experiences remain and often override more introspective or honest looks at both the abuse and the abuser leading to strange defenses for their abusers or contradicting views. You might have someone absolutely agree that something like paddling kids needs to be made illegal but then turn around and insist that the paddling they got as a kid wasn't as harmful or traumatizing. It is just one human taking their aggression or insecurities out on another because they have the power to do so of course. But that realization can be devastating to an already traumatized child because it strips their person-hood from the equation, they're forced to recognize that their abuser (often a care giver) doesn't see them as a person but merely an object or job, something to be dealt with or something they can break/use as they please. 2: Theory two is just they wanted to sound 'balanced' least their work be called one sided. I hope this is not the case because this theory would be a stupid reason to soft ball a 'school' that doesn't deserve the kid glove treatment.
a good example of your first theory is that one scene from Bojack Horseman. “Because if I don’t, that means that all the damage I got isn’t good damage, it’s just damage. i have gotten nothing out of it, and all those years i was miserable was for nothing.”
A most eloquently written and well thought out comment,I enjoy reading such comments written by people, like yourself, who can think critically and put it into words. Thank you.
The staff members defending their actions and behaviour is classic. People involved in horrific acts will often find excuses that make them seen like a "good one" or make up silver linings otherwise they would have to face the horror of what they participated in and contributed to and face the pain of realising they are not the "good person" they thought they were.
As someone with an older brother that reminds me of Paris (threatened my life, age inappropriate behavior, started small fires in the backyard, hurt some small animals, threw knives at my door while I was in my room, ect.) some moms will do ANYTHING but admit their kid has a problem. And I feel empathy towards the moms because you don't want to see your child as a monster. But when SOMEONE ELSE is put in danger, including your other children, it's time to stop deneying.
I’m so glad you talked about Goodnight Sugar Babe, because I felt so dumb after watching that because I knew that case was not quite as complicated as the doc was making it
I watched it on a channel, i think it's called John Grimes for the first time a few yrs back & I felt kinda dumb too. It was like couldn't keep up with the characters bc it was so many. But once I grasped it, I was disgusted, furious & sad😔
My stepsisters were both victims of the "Troubled Teen" industry. The most tragic aspect is that, like many others, the vast majority of their behavioral "issues" were the result of being being born to parents who were in active addiction and then subjected to the foster care system from very early ages. My stepmother was not equipped to deal with one, let alone two, children with such severe issues. But she refused to listen.
The story of Elan is horrific... I can't believe they were only shut down because someone finally exposed them on Reddit and a journalist picked up the story😢 It's so sad that half the people interviewed are now dead or in trouble 💔
Worse these "troubled teens" camps are still alive and well and abusing children using the exact same methods as Elan. They just moved to states where there was less oversight and regulation like Florida, Utah and Texas.
I remember seeing ads for that place as a teenager or hearing of it. I went to Catholic boarding school that had some "bad" rich girls that got kicked out and I'm wondering if I heard one or more were sent there.
I was in osawatomie state hospital in Kansas when I was 9. I would have to sit in the corner for up to a week. I remember those who were violent would be strapped to a bed in 10 point restraints and shot in the butt with thorazine. About 2 weeks later you'd see them again. They were strapped the entire time. They would restrain you by pulling your arms down behind your head. Had both of my shoulder blades snapped that way. A staff member had me climb a tree because I was scared of hieghts. I got up towards the top and fell. Landed on my chest with my legs doing a scorpion over my back. I couldn't walk. He picked me up and took me inside. He said "don't say anything, and I'll make sure you're ok". He would bring me pain medicine that would fuck me up. But my back didn't hurt very much. He just didn't want to lose his job. I could tell you stories that would scare the shit out of you. Even murders. So I feel that Elon doc hard.
That doc hit me harder than the others because wtf Charity!! She makes me so mad! Especially having another child and having them talk to Paris to just repeat the effed up cycle of overlooking crimes because ✨️family✨️
exactly, and the mothers attitude towards her son after he murdered her daughter is infuriating. my older brother was extremely abusive towards me growing up, to the point where police were called multiple times, and he got sent to juvie frequently, while my mother did little to nothing to stop him, because he's still her "baby boy"
A lot of parents are in denial and don't want to believe there is anything wrong with their children, then they wonder why the child acts the way they do or they make excuse after excuse for them.
For anyone interested in the first story, Id reccomend reading the webcomic Joe Vs Elan School. Its a webcomic made by a graduate of the school, and it goes super in depth about all the things GG talked about and more, including Joes own trauma and PTSD following his time at Elan. Highly recommend.
hate how common the situation in “the family i had” is where parents refuse to admit that their children have mental disorders and get them help early despite the harm theyre causing to themselves and others
That last doc..whew. I grew up in the 70s and 80s, and it occurred to no one I knew to tell us ‘hey, maybe don’t get into a stranger’s car’. I watched my friend get into a very nice man’s car to give her a ride home when I was about 7yrs old. He really wanted me to get in too, but we were at my driveway. I have flashes of the police talking to me and yelling at me to remember a license plate. and that was it. She was just gone. When I tell people, yeah a lot of us GenX didn’t really expect to survive into adulthood, I don’t think they realize what it was like back then.
I’m Gen X. I was around 12 yrs old when a student my age that went to the other Catholic school in town was murdered. Her name was Jeanine Nicarico. It’s a pretty famous case. Her murder was the first time I remember thinking “holy shit, this world is not safe for me.” I also met a man on a phone chat line and almost went to go meet him. I was also around 12 or 13. I honestly don’t know how I survived my childhood.
@AA-ed6ek this is very much so the case in Japan and UK at the moment. A child walking alone or taking public transport alone today is very common. Not a lot of worry about kidnapping even though it happens. Hitchhiking is still very popular in Japan.
@AA-ed6ek how do you think thats an appropriate comment to make when someone is sharing the loss of their friend that is a CHILD. why would the reply to that comment be where you need to complain about americans? Have some decency.
@@AA-ed6ekNo one is born knowing anything. If "you just knew" it's because of your environment. You saw something on TV, on the Internet, you heard your parents saying something, your relatives made comments, etc... It doesn't have to be a straight up conversation. You know to be cautious because the people around you are telling you to be. As someone who works with kids you really can't just expect them to understand "common sense" because common sense is something that's taught by the environment you're in.
There were kids who escaped Elan. 3, I believe, who all died the same night they escaped. I remember the story of one girl that escaped and tried to hitchhike to the nearest town, got picked up by a trucker, and he raped, murdered, and abandoned her on the side of the road near the "school". Another boy escaped, made it to a neighborhood and was shot after banging on a residence door begging for help. Those kids couldn't leave because the fear of the outside as much as the fear of the inside.
GG, I really appreciate that you make jokes about the viewing experience instead of the material. I've seen some other RUclipsrs try to make jokes while reacting to the events in whatever true crime thing they're watching and it is so distateful. You do an excellent job at being serious but also light hearted
!! I feel the exact same way. So many of them talk about these horrific events in the most infuriating, light hearted tone. It’s vindicating to hear someone discuss these documentaries in a light hearted way, while also knowing when to stop and have respect for the victims.
I'm a recovering heroin addict, I did it for like 15 years. That first documentary really really made me sad. I know the hell, and the despair they must feel. If you're reading this, and you're struggling, just know that there is hope, and you're not alone. I've known about Vera's case for a long time, And it's fucking infuriating that everyone failed her. I just don't see how other people aren't in prison.
Holy smokes, congrats on recovery after dealing with your addiction for so long! I just hit 3.5 years sober from alcohol and pills. Literally never thought it would end. If we can do it, anyone can ❤
I feel sick thinking of that poor girl, Vera. What a horrific life of terror and pain. In a way, her death- getting murdered, is the only way she could escape because so many people failed to protect or save her. That’s the most bleak but honest outlook on a person’s life… to say that getting murdered put her out of her man made misery. 😫😔😭 Rest In Peace Vera Jo.
The worst part is that they couldn't even do that right and just left her to die. Even getting put out of her misery was tortuous and humiliating for her.
The family I had was BAFFLING because… how’re two psychiatrists going to suggest you RUN AWAY from your child (because he’s probably going to kill you) and you just decide to continue engaging??????? Good luck to them. I hate that these people have the ability to continue roaming the streets with the rest of us.
Luckily in 2021, Charity FINALLY went no contact with Paris. Directly from her: I completely walked away from my eldest child and have not looked back. It is one thing to be a child who makes horrible decisions. It is another thing altogether to be a 27-year-old man and keep making decisions that put your family at risk. The final straw was learning he was "involved" with a woman who lived 2 hours away from us and was out on bond for planning a mass shooting. Boundaries had been crossed too many times. I bought a gun, learned to shoot (I am REALLY good now), and said goodbye. I finally accepted it is okay to love him as my son, but really dislike the man he has become.
@@EraTreeThank you so much for posting this quote from her. I really appreciate it. It's good to know and I hope she stays safe and far, far away from that evil man.
God, those first two in particular were absolutely heartbreaking. I'm not American, so I never heard about the troubled teen industry until MrJoeNobody started doing his comic on the Elan school. I haven't finished reading it yet. Don't know if I ever will. It's just... so difficult to imagine what those victims went through, and how they must have felt. I've dealt with abuse, but nothing anywhere near that scale, and learning about Elan disgusted me to my very core. The entire industry still does. I feel so sorry for anyone who had the misfortune to be taken to one of those places.
I can tell you that the police in Iowa are pretty much still the same as they were in the 80s. The father of my children went to live with his dad in Davenport Iowa in 2014 and 2 months later he was killed, shot 4 times in the chest and once in the abdomen. No one was charged with his murder, it didn't even seem like they investigated or talked to anyone.and 6 months later his father that he went to live with was found dead near tbe Mississippi River. He was a fisherman his whole life, he would have never drowned and his keys and wallet were taken out of his pants and left on a rock outside the water. And no his family doesn't think he killed himself. He had 5 other kids with him in Iowa and the circumstances were all very weird. And again, no real investigation, no real suspects connected to it. So it has been 9 years and we still have no answers. It makes no sense and it's infuriating. Our two children who were only 4 and 5 at the time have to grow up not even knowing their father and not knowing why he was taken away. It's not fair
I can kind of see why didn't investigate his father that thoroughly even though they should've, I mean he did lose his child. But a presumably young(?) guy like your partner who's new to the area randomly getting shot should've been taken incredibly seriously. Either way I'm very sorry for your loss and hope I didn't come off too dismissive.
Damn, GG, you just made me, a 50 year old hardened by life man literally cry with the story of Vera's last minutes on Earth! That poor, poor girl and that wicked, abusive manipulator 🤬🤬🤬 What the eff is wrong with these "families" and my lawd, WTAF were the police playing at? So, so much wrong with the whole story, my brain is struggling to comprehend it?! Wow😢😢😢
This is part of why I've never been scared of fictional horror media even as a little kid. Real life humans are capable of so many more horrific things. When people talk about some of the scariest and most disturbing horror media the monsters depicted are always humans.
I’ve got a story to tell that relates to this video, when you made a video talking about Dear Zachary I just had to watch it. I broke down multiple times during it, so I had to get my dad to watch it. I could count on one hand how many times he cried in the past 21 years of my life. After watching dear Zachary, he was more of a mess than I was, the man is otherwise the biggest stone wall I know. to this day I think Dear Zachary is the most powerful doc I’ve ever watched. An incredible story I have GG to thank for showing people like me
Dear Zachary got me fucked up. I did no research before hand and went in raw. I don't think I'd watch it again, even to show someone else. Absolutely devastating.
If someone held a gun to my head and told me to either watch Dear Zachary or A Serbian Film, I’ll choose the later. At least I’d know it’s not real and just a bunch of actors acting. 😰
There’s also a book from Zachary’s grandpa, David Bagby, that provides more details about the case, the aftermath, and how he and his wife were coping with the loss of their son and grandson. It’s called “Dance with the Devil: A Memoir of Murder and Loss.” There’s even an audiobook version if you’re interested. Idk, something about this case just stuck with me so I picked up the book immediately after.
I know a lot of people refuse to say what dear zachary is about because spoilers but I show me, I won't be able to watch it if it's as disturbing as people say so can someone quickly say what it's abt?
My stomach churned hearing Vera’s story, It still hurts me to my soul knowing there are many many people out there like the monsters that abused poor Vera 😔 I cant even fathom it sometimes. Hearing stories like Vera’s I have to stop myself sometimes from thinking about it too much or I would just spiral, especially having children and also suffering from domestic abuse😔
The black haired woman in the sugar babe documentary having a Taco Bell cup filled with milk sitting around behind her told me everything I needed to know about how she was somehow complicit with that murder
@@AmbiguousProxy I asked the question before I watched that scene. The lady looks like what most would call Trailer Trash and apparently reusing fast food containers is a stereotype of being Trailer Trash. LOL.
Vera’s story is so heartbreaking, it blows my mind how brutal a lot of people are and the amount of people that live in the conditions Vera lived. There was little to no justice to her, hope karma gets all the family and people who hurt her in any possible way
I was in a lot of "children's psychiatric inpatients" run by a place called Trillium. I STILL, to this day, have night terrors about being sent/ trapped there. I could go on for hours about the horrors I witnessed and endured firsthand. And that was in the early 2010's. I can not imagine how much worse these places were before the internet and when adults were much more willing to blindly trust a supposed authority figure, no matter what.
Those places gotta be shut down fr kids are sensitive they can't handle the chaos of an inpatient. What kids need is stability. They need to stay at home with a nurse who can watch them and make sure that they learn the things they need to learn and who can protect them from any possible at-home abuse.
i got curious so i looked into goodnight sugar bear before watching this video and god, its SO much worse than gg was able to get into, he was not joking. that poor poor woman, Vera wanted to escape repeated S abuse but died cold, naked, in pain and not able to be the best mother she could be. I hope all of that family rots with the way they were talking about her and what they did. Vera Jo deserved so much better, the neighbors who tried to get police involved and even *save* the kids while they were growing up must feel some guilt or defeat about what happened in that home. it makes me so fucking sick Cheri got a slap on the wrist for being a murderer and p*dophile (as young as TODDLERS mind you. i do not want to think about what she wouldve done to baby willadean or what they couldve done to her in the time span.) Cheri was so much worse than described, she had 5 children removed from her care because of what she did especially to her one year old, the one she had with her cousin. Abuse can create abusers, but im so sick about what she did.
Paris is an absolute monster, and one note that wasn't mentioned here was that he had a genius-level IQ when he was tested, like so many sociopaths throughout history.
Was I prepared to watch a video about disturbing documentaries and real life horrors tonight? No. But this is Mista GG and I can always trust that no matter how bad it gets he does his best to be as respectful to the victims and to his audience as he can. Now I’m gonna watch some of his more lighthearted content to settle down for the night. Thank you GG for all that you do.
Same. I was not prepared. I thought it was gunna be like a couple of movies that were fucked up... Not documentaries that make you wanna walk your kid to the mailbox in the front yard with a shotgun. So now I'm gunna watch some cartoons so I don't have nightmares.. probably ed edd n eddy
I was in an institution called Clarinda Academy. And the place is shockingly similar to Elan. It was owned by a company called Sequel. My year at Clarinda was the worst year of my entire life and I've still not recovered. The things I witnessed and went through while there will haunt me. I'm glad I got closed.
Its so crazy you mention JFK on the 60th anniversary of his death. RIP Edit: I wasn't trying to be funny, I genuinely did not expect it which is why I mentioned it.
Wow that “treatment center” is even worse than the one my ex was sent to in southern utah for getting caught smoking weed. They did the same wall punishment but never for that long, still horrific. My ex was so brainwashed he went back to work there and even got a tattoo of the name on his chest. I didn’t realize how bad the whole thing was until he took me to visit to celebrate his birthday a few weeks after our wedding. These types of places need to be shut down.
I was in 8th grade when Vera Jo was murdered. I remember the whole town being shaken bc murders just didn’t (and still don’t) just happen in Findlay. You didn’t seem to touch on how batshit crazy Sheri was, and hearing her side of the story is messy
Nothing will ever beat "Dear Zachary." I think it's because it was so well done and if you go into it without knowing much, it punches you right in the gut. You could walk into a room full of people and just say "Dear Zachary" and everyone who has seen it will have some kind of reaction. "Oh no! That was SO sad. I cried for a week!" Something like that is the general response.
So much of this is common for disabled people to be sent to abusive things. My sister won’t let my niece go to ANYTHING that “helps autistic girls” cause she watched them all break me
Love this series. I enjoy your humor but when the time calls for seriousness, you also deliver in a way that is just as engaging. I immensely respect your restraint in not trying to overcompensate with an overabundance of silliness to counteract the disturbing nature of these films (documentaries like Just Melvin, Just Evil, for example, deserve nothing but the utmost consideration and sensitivity given how absolutely sordid the subject matter is, and you gave us that in the last installment). Again, great work GG. You're one of my favorite youtubers for a reason.
GG! Thank you for spreading awareness about Vera’s story. I grew up in the city where Vera’s murder happened. I was to young to understand the events that were happening but after I learned about the events when I was older I was beyond nauseated. I just want to say again thank you for spreading awareness, those monsters could never be punished enough for what they did.
hey! I found your channel through your disturbing documentaries! it was Tickled! You said "hey check it out first before watching" and I went "ok let's see" loved it, then I came back and watched all your backlog!
Right when I start having faith in humanity once again I here stories like this and I remember just how terrible and evil people are and can be. This may be a hot take and insensitive but sometimes I just wish there was a vigilante out there avenging those who the justice system failed, ridding the earth of the nasty oozing cysts and cancerous tumors on our society who dont even deserve to called a human beings.
Vera's story broke my heart. My wife and I live about an hour away from where she's buried and we're in Findlay every so often- thinking next time we're going to go leave her some flowers.
I remember throughout the years I went to summer program (it was supposed to help with remembering subjects for school) and I met a lot of really cool people who were normally in schools for troubled teens. I heard a lot of horror stories too from them and it breaks my heart, they're wonderful and I really hope that they're doing well now. I can only imagine how awful it is with the Elan school and how it was even allowed to stay open as long as it has. What I appreciate about the internet is that people I know are more aware of places like this now, along with the troubled teen industry.
The worst part about Vera Jo's abuse is having her babu withheld from her. She's in the same room, but not able to hold her or speak to her. As a mom, that kills me. I can't imagine being tortured for hugging my child.
The Elan story reminds me of the White House boys of Marianna, FL. What happened in Marianna is one of the most disturbing things that's ever happened in this country and to think it went on for decades is unbelievable, especially since the entire town was in on it. I highly recommend looking it up if you haven't heard of it, but be prepared. It's dark as hell. I mean there were bodies of children discovered on the grounds just a few years ago and there are believed to be many more that haven't been discovered yet.
Call me crazy but, Paris killing Ella, is terrible and he deserves the worst for it. I can understand his mom “forgiving” him as to not lose both of her kids. However if I found out my 13 year old son assaulted my 4 year old daughter as well as murdering her???? He would never ever be forgiven. I’m not saying I can excuse murder. But I 100% cannot fathom forgiving murder and assault. Also charity saying “Achilles was killed….. by Paris!” Is fucking crazy hello???
Last time I saw someone forgive a killer it went like this He killed her mom, she forgave him and hired him in the store he killed her mom in. He then kills her in the store too
Yesss, been waiting for the revisit to disturbing docs. Absolute bangers every time. I'd still love to hear your thoughts on Dear Zachary considering you were the entire reason I watched it.
Mista GG, You are a VERY STRONG man for watching these Docs and being able to summarize them back to us. I don't have the stomach for it man. It angers me that this kind of abuse has happened.
Okay, so I know it’s a very serious video of docs… but I’m crying from laughing so hard at myself because when you cut to singing as an Applebees wing ad I really thought the video cut off for an ad and I grabbed my remote, cause I’m watching on my TV, waiting for the skip option to show up 😂 I walked away for a few seconds to feed my cat so I wasn’t fully paying attention and just heard the transition from pause to singing… I’m dying! 😂
Been watching your videos for years man, just wanted to say it's been so awesome getting to see your method, presentation, and attitude evolve over the years. You've supplied top tier content from day one, and it keeps gettin better! Long as you're posting, I'm watching!
I remember Wendigoon talking about the disappearance of Johnny and Martin and the beginning of the milk carton campaign. Unfortunate that it didn’t really achieve anything and that a lot of kids on those weren’t actually missing, just teens that went out to party for a few days or something
I don't believe I've ever seen GG as upset as he did when talking about Vera's life and her murder. He usually crack jokes that help with the darkness of the topic in a dark humor way. He couldn't even do that, he just wanted up to sit with it and the disturbing nature of it.
I stumbled upon the Sugarbabe doc and also thought it was made in the late 90’s. The story is also so horrible, and then we find out that most of the people involved got away with the abuse.
I find most of the documentaries I've seen come in three flavors: absolutely disturbing, frustrating, or a bitter blend of the two. The only one that I can think of that didn't leave me feeling worse after was Dave Not Coming Back, just because of the love on display from the people involved in the events. It was very sad to say the least, but not something that made me feel helpless afterward. Highly recommend that one. It's about the death of a diver and the efforts to retrieve his body from an incredibly dangerous diving location. (I should note, this isn't a recommendation for GG's disturbing docs series, just for people in general. It's not disturbing in the same way these docs are.)
I love all your other videos, but especially love when you cover “disturbing” documentaries. It absolutely intrigues me at the backstory and real world info related to these f*cked up people and stories. Thanks gg, I hope you continue this in the future !
Amazing as always, GG. I'm from Maine and Elan is awful. Its clear the students who thought it helped are still in so much pain. I hope they get the healing they need.
The arguably worst part of all of these disturbing docs is learning every single little way the system can fail you and wondering how many similar or worse cases out there never got solved, the victims never got help, and the perpetrators never got punished.
These monsters need to pray to and thank their deity of choice that people didn’t execute them after these docs. How the hell is Sherry even alive still? Like I get it. People have self control. But, good lord these docs are infuriating.
“Gradually it was disclosed to me that the line separating good and evil passes not through states, nor between classes, nor between political parties either -- but right through every human heart -- and through all human hearts. This line shifts. Inside us, it oscillates with the years. And even within hearts overwhelmed by evil, one small bridgehead of good is retained. And even in the best of all hearts, there remains ... an unuprooted small corner of evil. Since then I have come to understand the truth of all the religions of the world: They struggle with the evil inside a human being (inside every human being). It is impossible to expel evil from the world in its entirety, but it is possible to constrict it within each person.” ― Aleksandr I. Solzhenitsyn, The Gulag Archipelago 1918-1956
Goodnight sugar babe happened in my hometown when I was a jr in HS. I recognized a lot of the people in it but the craziest part is that the city kept it pretty hush hush. Like most of us didn’t even hear about it until the doc came out.
I love this series you do. Have you ever heard of the Steven Stayner case? When I was 9 to 11 years old I had a friend named Dennis Parnell. He was a great kid. Nice, funny, kind of quiet. He lived with his dad, Ken, in a trailer up a long dirt road (this was in the middle of the woods in Northern California). Ken was a nasty little man. Angry, never talked, smelled awful and perved on little boys (my brother went to the trailer to hang out once, and never went back because he said Ken had made them watch porn and tried to get them drunk). We moved away when I was 12. When I was 14, my mom sat us down and told us that Dennis had run away, and that it turned out Ken wasn't his father. Dennis was actually Steven Stayner, who was kidnapped from the streets of Merced when he was 7 years old, by Ken and an accomplice. He'd been held by Ken for 7 years. Ken told Steven that his parents didn't want him anymore and had given Ken the right to adopt him. That his new name was Dennis. Ken SA'd Steven the entire 7 years until Steven was 14, and that made him "too old" to be attractive to Ken anymore. Ken then went out and kidnapped another little boy, Timothy. Steven/Dennis watched as Ken dyed Timothy's hair and told him his parents had given him to Ken to raise. Steven/Dennis realised: Oh, that's what he did to ME, and it was BS then as it is now. He waited until Ken left, then took Timothy and got him to a sheriff's station. He told the cops "I know my first name is Steven". Ken was arrested and tried, but the SA abuses were not part of it, because people thought it would be too hard for Steven to talk about. So Ken got 7 years in prison on the kidnapping charges. Steven went home to his family, but died in his 20s in a motorcycle accident. The kid I knew as Dennis was an amazing, great guy and I was horrified to find out what he'd been going through the whole time we were friends. There's a few docs on this story. The most recent one is 'Captive Audience - A Real American Horror Story', and it's pretty good. I'd love to see you cover it. Sad footnote to this already horrific tale: Steven's brother, Cary Stayner, turned out to be a serial killer - the Yosemite cases from the 90s. Totally unrelated to Steven's story, as far as I know; just a freaking awful coincidence. BTW, Ken was released after 7 years and I kept track of him as best I could. In the 90s I found out he was living in the same town I was and I called the cops to make sure they knew who this monster really was. They told me they knew and were keeping a close eye on him. Not too long after, Ken was arrested for trying to buy an infant boy from his Meals On Wheels lady. She told the cops, they wired her up and she went back in, and they got Ken dead to rights. He spent the rest of his miserable life at Atascadero prison - where CA keeps the worst of the worst. And he died in 2008. I threw a party that day. Anyway, RIP Steven/Dennis - a really great guy and a hero for saving Timothy White from the same horrors he went through.
Those are both amazing documentaries. Aunt Diane is so sad because it's SO OBVIOUS she had substance abuse problems but her family refuses to accept it. I feel so bad for the kids. Tell Me Who I Am is devastating, coming from somebody who experienced abuse growing up. Both stellar and I recommend both regularly to other people.
The main isse I have with "The fanily I had" is how It fear mongers in demonizes disorders like schizophrenia and ASPD ( antisocial personality disorder ) which are not as villainous as people tend to think. I have schizoaffective disorder which is essentially just schizophrenia with a mood disorder. And it's really just frustrating to see how within a lot of these docs They don't seem to challenge a lot of the stigma that comes with and goes towards mental health issues especially when it comes to psychotic disorders or personality disorders. Are those actions of Paris horrific? absolutely. But are they telling of what it's like for many people who have ASPD? No. But I understand that it was also kind of just a thing of the time that it came out. So I just want people to be aware of those things and the biases that come with these kind of docks going into them. I also really can empathize with the mother of well yes you should be getting your kid with homicidal tendencies mental health help, I have been in long-term treatment facilities and there is a lot of stuff that goes on in there that you just don't hear about. I was never sexually abused but you would be surprised at how many people I hear about and have friends who were within it. The one thing that stuck with me is that I came in and was having a huge panic attack and one of the staff threatened me with chemical restraints if I didn't calm down. The things that I have seen there and the way that they treated other people, especially kids just with anger issues, we're very upsetting to put it lightly. So I can understand in a way why the mother would be hesitant to put him in a treatment facility. But my empathy can also only go so far when she is literally being warned by everyone around her that he is going to hurt someone and that she needs to even afterwards change her full identity so that he can't find her and kill her.
Genuinely the story of elan is haunting, i first learned about it from a video essay from Nexpo and christ- the stuff that went down in that place until 2011 was horrendous
The Johnny Gosch story haunts me…I feel like this happens so often and the authorities/community leaders/elected officials are in on it bc they benefit from it in one way or another. And then there’s Larry King(not the suspendered late night host)oh my goodness- the embodiment of evil who was able to get away with a majority of his depraved crimes….it’s maddening
My adoptive parents shipped me off to the troubled teen industry, and i personally didnt suffer any physical abuse, but i saw plenty, and was put through lots of the psychological kind. These places all need to be shut down
I dont think ive seen GG this shook over a movie maybe ever, and ive been here since we were still joshin on aunt viv. Big ups for the video, man. We appreciate you
Yeah! It's so sad to see, but unfortunately not surprising, that no one believed the person with DID about the trafficking. Trafficking survivors will usually have c-PTSD, and again, commonly have DID due to the abuse as a child. He was telling them actual facts, that could have been putting himself in danger if the group that trafficked him found out, and yet no one believed him? ugh.
I am soooo with ya, yo i havent even finished this video yet because of rewinding so many times but YES SPREAD AWARENESS. AND ACTIVILY PREVENT THIS SHITE. THIS SHIT MUST STOP NOW. We serious need active action and harsh penalties for abusers. The worst part is things like this get dug up after the fact. Im honestly heartbroken here yall.
Wow, hearing that woman describe how she made her imaginary friend leave because she was so humilated absolutely broke my heart. I cam't imagine making a CHILD feel like that. Humans never cease to amaze me with the level of heinous cruelty that they're capable of inflicting.
That part really got to me, too.
So sad... 😢
And she was visually impaired too, which broke my heart for her even more. There is a special place in hell for anyone who abuses a child or a person with special needs. These people did it in one fell swoop. 😢
'Troubled teen" wilderness camps should be shut down and thr people who participated in the abuse should be criminally charged. Or at the minimum the places all need to be reformed and be run by actual qualified medical professionals. This stuff is still going on to this day, mainly in Utah and Idaho
Make sure to watch some wholesome content from time to time, to remind you that humans are capable of all things up and down the spectrum. We can be the most amazing, thoughtful and empathetic creatures, then the next day be the most awful vile person ever. The only real way to stop that from happening is to abolish freedom tho. So... cheers, we're all in this long ride together, crazy, or not.
Charity: "Despite it all, I still love him. I can see the love in his heart."
Local neighbor: "I saw that kid trying to make a pipe bomb."
Luckily she finally went no contact with him in 2021.
@adeer87 100%, zero question.
I think parents should be convicted with their kids, if they are under a certain age and take another life.
@@SJ-ni6iywhy? Investigated, sure. But not every parent is complicit or to blame for their child's actions...this particular parent lost her daughter at the hands of her son, and has gone no contact in order to protect her 3rd child...she's suffered too 🤦♀️
@@gRinchY-op5vr she created the monster, if any mother had to lose a child because of him, it should be the one who created him.
The whole "why aren't we doing something about this?? Oh cause we can't? That fucking sucks" is part of the reason I can't watch a lot of these.
It just makes me angry and then it's depressing.
That’s life, you still can do something ❤
@@nrg6245Oh no, what's the cringemaster gonna do?
Respect to Dave. What a chad.
Escaped, meets a veteran in the woods where he lives for 2 years.
Veteran teaches him how to live and fend for himself out there.
And Dave, now old, and a Biker Dude, teaches others the same.
The dude who taught him, Sticks, kinda fascinates me.
Big W for my boy Dave
Honestly it’s a great feeling when you meet someone like that i remember meeting a local biker and he found out about me being bi and he was honestly the nicest person Ive met and keep mind he’s this massive manly bigger guy beard and all
Forreal. Sticks and Dave were fuckin badasses. And to know Dave actually made it and teaches others is a very slim, but incredibly bright, silver lining in this horrific story of child abuse and evil. Let's all aspire to be like Sticks and Dave.
What does "what a chad" mean?
"The cops didn't do shit. They chalked it up to Johnny being a run away"
Yep, sounds about right.
In the early 90s we lived in a nice neighborhood. One day my mom was watering the plants & the neighbor girl 2 houses down was playing outside by herself.
A green stationwagon pulls up & the guy starts talking to the neighbor girl. Mom jumps into action. Yells at the guy & grabs the girl & runs into her house to her parents. Guy peels off. Mom calls the cops, & gives them the license plate etc. Nothing ever came of it.
Mom calls her mother later on & tells her about the ordeal. My Gran then tells my mom "Why would you do that? Why would you get involved? It's none of your business."
Who did my Gran work for? The county sheriff. Lost A LOT of respect for my Gran after hearing about that.
Your mom is a saint. She literally saved a little girl’s life. Respect
@@demonheadxx4410 She actually questioned herself for a long time after what my Gran said to her. I looked at her & said "Fuck Granny! You did the right thing"
We all still keep in contact with the neighbor girl & her family.
damn. your mum was 100000% in the right!!!!! “The only thing necessary for evil to triumph in the world is that good (wo)men do nothing”@@TwiggyHetfield27
Your mother is a legend🫡
Unfortunately, your gran's reaction was probably based on the potential that now your family might be targeted. You've gotta consider that the people who are bold enough to just farm selections from, as you put it, a "nice neighborhood" have a lot of power and leverage. Otherwise they'd pick up someone who's from a shitty neighborhood, or are an actual runaway. Corruption comes from various levels and in various forms. So for all your gram knew, anyone she worked with could be in on the human trafficking. That's how corruption works. Infect the system, and strike fear in the hearts of the just in order to keep them in line. Your mom's a hero for sure. But your gran isn't necessarily a villain for probably being scared. It's a fucked up world we live in.
One of the biggest things that killed me about Elan was a pair of escapees - three people I've heard of made an escape; a minor that wasn't named, Brad Glickman and Dawn Birnbaum. The unnamed child was picked up by a cop and taken home after telling him what happened but Dawn and Brad, those poor kids, Brad was shot dead after making it to a residence and Dawn was picked up by a trucker before being raped and murdered by said trucker, really just out of the frying pan and into the fire.
Yes. I saw those and my heart broke.
Were the killers caught?
@@gaminganimators7000Dawn's murder, James Robert Cruz Jr, was sentenced to life in prison. Brad was accidentally shot and the man who did it, Roy O'Hara, was convicted of manslaughter, though his conviction was partially overturned 3 years later.
@criptastical I do have to feel bad for brad however I really can't blame Roy that much, someone arrives on his property in bumfuck nowhere in the middle of the night
Lord, I fucking hate humanity
"I want to spend time with Pheonix when I get out. Because I *will* get out."
*I don't like that ominous ass wording, Paris.*
😂😂😂 “ominous ass wording” 💀
And his mom will let that happen.
@@burgessballenas9332nah. She went no contact with him.
From her social media in 2021:
I completely walked away from my eldest child and have not looked back. It is one thing to be a child who makes horrible decisions. It is another thing altogether to be a 27-year-old man and keep making decisions that put your family at risk. The final straw was learning he was "involved" with a woman who lived 2 hours away from us and was out on bond for planning a mass shooting. Boundaries had been crossed too many times. I bought a gun, learned to shoot (I am REALLY good now), and said goodbye. I finally accepted it is okay to love him as my son, but really dislike the man he has become.
If my name was Paris I'd become a psycho too.
His mom should have went to prison along with him. She is just as guilty, for not getting her son help.
I remember Wendigoon's spectacular video covering Johnny's disappearance in regards to how it led to the Missing Children's Milk Carton Program, and all the problems that came from it. I believe in that video he also mentioned something about how, when adult Johnny showed up at his mother's house, it's widely accepted that it wasn't actually Johnny. Just someone playing a prank on his devastated mother and she fully believed it even years after. Although it's impossible to know for sure, it was just a tragic story all around.
(Holy shit, my favorite HTTYD creator also watches my favorite “disturbing content” creator?! What is this, a crossover episode?)
It’s so weird how this is a common occurrence. Whether it’s a prank or just a way for some loser to get some attention, idk. It’s a phenomenon that’s completely unimaginable for me. Just so sick.
That was what I was also thinking of and then GG actually mentions Wendigoon
Gg and wendigoon actually do collabs guys.😊
What bothers me about that is that - whether or not it was actually Johnny - why the Hell would his mother allow him to leave? This was her son, someone she hadn't seen him in so many years, had no idea where he was or what he had been through, and just allows him to go - with her reasons being she was happy/assured he's fine.
As awful as it sounds, I hope that was a fever dream/hallucination on her part because if it actually happened, it is beyond messed up. If it were my kid that suddenly shows up after disappearing years prior, that kid wouldn't be out of my sight for a second after reuniting.
As someone in my masters, for social work, I am absolutely horrified, but I am not surprised at how these so-called institutions treat its clients who are not only vulnerable but desperately need help. It’s disgusting.
dude i went to the ward once and my family tried to convince me i needed long term treatment. NOPE! big super large nope! basically baby jail with absolutely no resources or structure. hell naw count me tf out 😂
@@jaydetbh Jesus I’m so sorry. I was almost committed once when I was in my teens because my mental illness just hit me like a ton of bricks. I knew that the institutions around me, which was Pilgrim State (a notorious mental health institution in NY) was like prison. I could NOT.
@@rhiannajd4412it sounds very much like a rehab I stayed at in the late 80's. The punishments were so similar to what GG discussed in his video. The reasons used were mostly around breaking you down completely to then build you up from the beginning. Unfortunately, humans, particularly ones who've survived the process and are not used to any form of power or respect can be very willing to enforce said "treatment" with much verve and enjoyment. You had your head shaved and made to wear a jumpsuit,as tho you were in a prison,not a place of help and healing.
Oh, and one of their main punishments was being made to stand in front of a mirror, chanting why you were worthless and deserved everything coming your way, and I'm talking hours of this at a time.
@@INSOMNIAREX god I am so so incredibly sorry. Clearly demonstrates how mental health “reforms” haven’t done what they’ve promised to do if they’re applicable today.
Also in my masters for social work here! And yeah its absolutely awful. My clients in my internship tend to be older adults and the stories they tell break my heart
One note about Vera's case is that they were all inbred and that the whole relationship and pregnancy was all due to Cheri wanting a daughter... I know a lot of true crime channels have covered Vera's is the only reason I know. The whole case is incredibly heart breaking and hearing about how many times she should have been saved is enraging.
The mom is named Cheri Brooks who caused the brutal murder of Vera Jo Reigle.
Unfortunately, Elan isn't unique when it comes to abusive juvenile facilities. I've been covering 2 here in Florida on my blog & was actively involved in the investigation into them.They made national news when a number of kids were found buried in unmarked graves. That campus ran from 1901 to 2011 before finally being shut down, several years AFTER those remains were found. The other campus is still in operation today. It's so disgusting.
Yup the "troubled teen" camp industry is still alive and making billions today using the same techniques to abuse and traumatise vulnerable children. If they get closed down they just move to another state with lax laws and regulations. Utah, Florida and Texas are hot spots.
Thank you for your work. The only way to fix this shit is to expose it for everyone to see
Thank you for working to expose institutionalized child abuse.
I think I've read stories about those on Reddit from former residents/survivors... Ah yea, Dozier School for Boys, I checked your blog. Heartbreaking and rage-inducing... Are you active on Reddit?
look into Clarinda Academy in iowa. i went there in 2013 and it was the worst year of my entire life
I was trafficked as a child, causing me to lash out at puberty and my teens. Nothing TOO crazy mind you...Staying at my friend's home late, having boyfriends (but not being too sexually active because of my history...), smoking the devil's lettuce, and worst of all...some pretty bad self harm. So clearly, just a menace to society lol. The worst "trouble" I got in was being driven home by a cop because I was walking home at 3 AM. But my mother is an alcoholic narcissist. My rich step famoly wanted to send me to Elan as a black-haired teen with ptsd from monstrous sex abuse is apparently too embarrassing for their high-society lives.
Had I been sent to one of those places, I wouldn't be alive today. I know that in my heart. I dealt with heroin addiction (8 years clean next March) and still have ptsd and clinical depression. Sweeping kids that have suffered at the hands of (mostly) adults they trusted to a place to be abused further...yeah....I'm not surprised most of the alumni are addicts, imprisoned, or dead.
I just finished giving a victim impact statement because some prick was found with...certain materials...containing me. I've known most my life it was out there. It pops up occasionally.
Knowing that monster is spending his life in a prison as a p3d0phile makes my heart lift. He's already in his 60s and he recieved 80 years.
My boyfriend took me out to a nice dinner when the verdict was read. My life is good. I'm happy. And it's no thanks to those kinds of facilities.
Im glad things turned out well in the end!! I'm so sorry about everything that happened. please continue to take care of yourself, never forget to do it, your safety and happiness are the most important thing.
❤ sending love and hope
❤
You are so fucking strong. you have lived through a type of hell that most people couldn’t imagine, and every day that you’re alive is a testament to your resilience and your ability to survive. You should be proud of the person that you are, and the person that you’ve become. You may not be a perfect person, but you have put in hours, days, months, and years of work and effort into yourself and making the most of your life, and that is something that you should be proud of. You certainly don’t need encouragement from an internet stranger of all people, but know that someone out there is rooting for you. Rooting for your success and continued happiness, and although I do not know you, I have boundless pride and hope for you.
Hugs from a stranger
happy to hear about your 8 years, and i’m happy to hear you made a victim impact statement. i wish you a long and happy life
I don't think I've ever heard a story to break my heart in the way that Vera's did. The fact that not only was her family horrid to her, but the fact that law enforcements had so many opportunities to maybe save her is gut wrenching.I don't think I've ever been so viscerally disgusted as I am with how Vera was treated. May God rest her soul.
No, cause it wasn't even HER family. The fat lady convinced Vera to live with her messed up family. She literally just wanted an incubator and someone to abuse for entertainment.
I mean where the hell was her original family? How are you going to leave your mentally handicapped child just shack up with some random family and get knocked up and shit? Absolutely everyone fuckin failed that girl. The whole thing is revolting. I’m into horror, but that’s some of the scariest shit I’ve ever heard of.
I think that family is being protected by dark forces in the government for some unknown reason. Maybe they are up to secret shinanigans like ‘C Traffickers’
It took all of me to continue to listen to that section. Fucking horrific.
I think that’s the first time I’ve seen GG seem genuinely angry in a video and I don’t blame him. It’s one of the most vile stories I’ve heard.
My sister is intellectually disabled in an extremely similar way to Vera. I've never heard her case before and it fucking broke me. The thought of someone treating my sister in that same way... I can't even imagine, it makes me so infuriated. Rest easy sweet Vera, you deserved so much better ♥️
I’m with you girl
I hate that I so often hear of people with intellectual disabilities taking advantage of like used for free labour, used sexually, scammed from their money. And specially if the person is also e and doesn't have people who care and actually look after them, they just look after friends and someone who cares and then get taken advantage of. It makes me specially angry when the most vulnerable people are taken advantage of.
My uncle was intellectually challenge and my momma and I took care of him after my grandma died. He was the happiest and best man I knew. That story broke me.
Meh, Zachary was only 15 yo a minor, js. Vera should have stayed home with her biological mom instead of sleeping with minors.
It’s a dangerous world and some people in these comments delusional living in a false reality.
The story of Vera is so so sad and sick... How do people like Cheri exist? Thanks for spreading the word. I don't think I could stomach watching it. It was hard enough just hearing the cliffs notes version.
Probably undiagnosed psychopathy combined with heavy drug use and drinking
Wait what
Personality disorders. People like this and their victims are much more common than people think, but you only hear about maybe a 1/4th of the ones that die, and none of the ones that survive.
It's not an excuse, but Cheri was also sexually abused since toddlerhood by her own dad. She was a victim who became a monster.
@@LauraM-kr9wvand?
That’s not relevant to Vera’s abuse, it just sounds like you’re trying to justify Cheri’s behaviour, even if you say you’re not
I am a rape survivor, and while being questioned in the process of legal matters they didnt focus on what happened to me at all, what they did focus on was the fact I had sex toys. Which for some reason means I was a liar? its honestly just messed up, the victim is never the victim in these situations. Investigators will focus on the dumbest most unnecessary things
Ugh I’m so sorry. That pisses me off. The way sexual assault survivors are treated is maddening.😤🤬
100% agree Ive talked to a few victims and the way they describe how authorities treated them it’s just so wrong, hopefully things are better for you now and best of wishes
I was raped and the thing that got focused on was we were drinking. Not that I said no multiple times and asked him to leave. They just sit there and fucking judge you, like excuse me for speaking up for myself? Sorry for being an adult who just wanted to hang with a co-worker I thought was a cool person? It took me so long to get over my fear of police that there are a few times I should have called them but just avoided it at all costs. Thankfully the place I live now has the best freaking police. They are very kind and empathetic, and they were able to send caseworkers with them most of the times I called, if not immediately they managed to at some point. Even knowing all that, still sometime struggle to call. I wish they understood how truly traumatizing it is to have that interaction with them.
Unfortunately, that type of thing seems to be the norm. I had a history of drug use years before I was Ra*ped and all they kept asking me about was if I was using again and could be misremembering, even though they had the results of a drug test in the kit. They're disgusting.
My partner faced abuse as a child. Years and years of it, not old enough to know what it even was. After realizing what was wrong and trying to tell someone, nothing happened. A YEAR later they did something about it, and he only got charged for four out of the EIGHT years of abuse.
Truly, this is America.
Note for the first doc... I have two theories for why they pulled that heel turn at the end:
1: People who suffer abuse often try to rationalize their abuse as having a 'meaning', a 'purpose'. Speaking from personal experience, because it's easier to have a 'silver lining or positive outcome of the abuse' to point to rather than the callous reality that cruelty doesn't need a reason and it doesn't have a silver lining.
Especially for kids, they can rationalize the experience as being something 'worth experiencing even if it was painful' because that idea provides a very twisted sense of solace and hope.
I.E "Sure my dad beat me but it taught me discipline." or "Yeah I got screamed at a lot but only because I was being bad, without it I would still be bad."
It's important to remember that kids are not working with a fully grown brain nor the necessary context in most cases to fully understand what is being done to them let alone that it is the abuser's fault, not theirs. Even after they grow into adults those early experiences remain and often override more introspective or honest looks at both the abuse and the abuser leading to strange defenses for their abusers or contradicting views.
You might have someone absolutely agree that something like paddling kids needs to be made illegal but then turn around and insist that the paddling they got as a kid wasn't as harmful or traumatizing.
It is just one human taking their aggression or insecurities out on another because they have the power to do so of course. But that realization can be devastating to an already traumatized child because it strips their person-hood from the equation, they're forced to recognize that their abuser (often a care giver) doesn't see them as a person but merely an object or job, something to be dealt with or something they can break/use as they please.
2: Theory two is just they wanted to sound 'balanced' least their work be called one sided. I hope this is not the case because this theory would be a stupid reason to soft ball a 'school' that doesn't deserve the kid glove treatment.
a good example of your first theory is that one scene from Bojack Horseman. “Because if I don’t, that means that all the damage I got isn’t good damage, it’s just damage. i have gotten nothing out of it, and all those years i was miserable was for nothing.”
A most eloquently written and well thought out comment,I enjoy reading such comments written by people, like yourself, who can think critically and put it into words. Thank you.
The staff members defending their actions and behaviour is classic. People involved in horrific acts will often find excuses that make them seen like a "good one" or make up silver linings otherwise they would have to face the horror of what they participated in and contributed to and face the pain of realising they are not the "good person" they thought they were.
@@walkingexistentaldread3079 i’m glad i’m not the only one that was reminded of this
@@INSOMNIAREX you put into words exactly what I was going to say. It's so nice whenever someone has something to actually bring to a topic
As someone with an older brother that reminds me of Paris (threatened my life, age inappropriate behavior, started small fires in the backyard, hurt some small animals, threw knives at my door while I was in my room, ect.) some moms will do ANYTHING but admit their kid has a problem. And I feel empathy towards the moms because you don't want to see your child as a monster. But when SOMEONE ELSE is put in danger, including your other children, it's time to stop deneying.
I’m so glad you talked about Goodnight Sugar Babe, because I felt so dumb after watching that because I knew that case was not quite as complicated as the doc was making it
I watched it on a channel, i think it's called John Grimes for the first time a few yrs back & I felt kinda dumb too. It was like couldn't keep up with the characters bc it was so many. But once I grasped it, I was disgusted, furious & sad😔
Yeah I agree I was left confused after watching the doc
My stepsisters were both victims of the "Troubled Teen" industry. The most tragic aspect is that, like many others, the vast majority of their behavioral "issues" were the result of being being born to parents who were in active addiction and then subjected to the foster care system from very early ages. My stepmother was not equipped to deal with one, let alone two, children with such severe issues. But she refused to listen.
The story of Elan is horrific... I can't believe they were only shut down because someone finally exposed them on Reddit and a journalist picked up the story😢
It's so sad that half the people interviewed are now dead or in trouble 💔
Worse these "troubled teens" camps are still alive and well and abusing children using the exact same methods as Elan. They just moved to states where there was less oversight and regulation like Florida, Utah and Texas.
What's the documentary name anyone??
I remember seeing ads for that place as a teenager or hearing of it. I went to Catholic boarding school that had some "bad" rich girls that got kicked out and I'm wondering if I heard one or more were sent there.
I was in osawatomie state hospital in Kansas when I was 9. I would have to sit in the corner for up to a week. I remember those who were violent would be strapped to a bed in 10 point restraints and shot in the butt with thorazine. About 2 weeks later you'd see them again. They were strapped the entire time. They would restrain you by pulling your arms down behind your head. Had both of my shoulder blades snapped that way. A staff member had me climb a tree because I was scared of hieghts. I got up towards the top and fell. Landed on my chest with my legs doing a scorpion over my back. I couldn't walk. He picked me up and took me inside. He said "don't say anything, and I'll make sure you're ok". He would bring me pain medicine that would fuck me up. But my back didn't hurt very much. He just didn't want to lose his job. I could tell you stories that would scare the shit out of you. Even murders. So I feel that Elon doc hard.
But schools like elan made chet hanks into what he is today. And that's beautiful 😍
The Family I Had is definitely a great lesson for those parents out there that over look their children's problems
That doc hit me harder than the others because wtf Charity!! She makes me so mad! Especially having another child and having them talk to Paris to just repeat the effed up cycle of overlooking crimes because ✨️family✨️
exactly, and the mothers attitude towards her son after he murdered her daughter is infuriating. my older brother was extremely abusive towards me growing up, to the point where police were called multiple times, and he got sent to juvie frequently, while my mother did little to nothing to stop him, because he's still her "baby boy"
A lot of parents are in denial and don't want to believe there is anything wrong with their children, then they wonder why the child acts the way they do or they make excuse after excuse for them.
For anyone interested in the first story, Id reccomend reading the webcomic Joe Vs Elan School. Its a webcomic made by a graduate of the school, and it goes super in depth about all the things GG talked about and more, including Joes own trauma and PTSD following his time at Elan. Highly recommend.
Such a well made comic.
Was hoping somebody would mention it
recently reread this one. cant wait for the book, whenever that is
its really good, heartbreaking story
hate how common the situation in “the family i had” is where parents refuse to admit that their children have mental disorders and get them help early despite the harm theyre causing to themselves and others
That last doc..whew. I grew up in the 70s and 80s, and it occurred to no one I knew to tell us ‘hey, maybe don’t get into a stranger’s car’. I watched my friend get into a very nice man’s car to give her a ride home when I was about 7yrs old. He really wanted me to get in too, but we were at my driveway. I have flashes of the police talking to me and yelling at me to remember a license plate. and that was it. She was just gone.
When I tell people, yeah a lot of us GenX didn’t really expect to survive into adulthood, I don’t think they realize what it was like back then.
I’m Gen X. I was around 12 yrs old when a student my age that went to the other Catholic school in town was murdered. Her name was Jeanine Nicarico. It’s a pretty famous case. Her murder was the first time I remember thinking “holy shit, this world is not safe for me.” I also met a man on a phone chat line and almost went to go meet him. I was also around 12 or 13. I honestly don’t know how I survived my childhood.
@AA-ed6ek this is very much so the case in Japan and UK at the moment. A child walking alone or taking public transport alone today is very common. Not a lot of worry about kidnapping even though it happens. Hitchhiking is still very popular in Japan.
@AA-ed6ek how do you think thats an appropriate comment to make when someone is sharing the loss of their friend that is a CHILD. why would the reply to that comment be where you need to complain about americans? Have some decency.
Im sorry you experienced that and I'm sorry for the loss of your friend.
@@AA-ed6ekNo one is born knowing anything. If "you just knew" it's because of your environment. You saw something on TV, on the Internet, you heard your parents saying something, your relatives made comments, etc... It doesn't have to be a straight up conversation. You know to be cautious because the people around you are telling you to be. As someone who works with kids you really can't just expect them to understand "common sense" because common sense is something that's taught by the environment you're in.
There were kids who escaped Elan. 3, I believe, who all died the same night they escaped. I remember the story of one girl that escaped and tried to hitchhike to the nearest town, got picked up by a trucker, and he raped, murdered, and abandoned her on the side of the road near the "school". Another boy escaped, made it to a neighborhood and was shot after banging on a residence door begging for help. Those kids couldn't leave because the fear of the outside as much as the fear of the inside.
I fucking knew instantly what her fate would be when you said hitchhike. I just can’t understand it. A lot of serial killers are truckers too
GG, I really appreciate that you make jokes about the viewing experience instead of the material. I've seen some other RUclipsrs try to make jokes while reacting to the events in whatever true crime thing they're watching and it is so distateful. You do an excellent job at being serious but also light hearted
I couldnt pinpoint why Im able to watch GG’s docs/horror series but you said it best! He’s very tasteful
100% this
Very good point. There’s a huge portion of the true crime community that seems completely out of touch with the reality of what they’re talking about
!! I feel the exact same way. So many of them talk about these horrific events in the most infuriating, light hearted tone. It’s vindicating to hear someone discuss these documentaries in a light hearted way, while also knowing when to stop and have respect for the victims.
The story and death of Vera Jo makes me wish the Punisher was real. No one in that family besides Vera’s child deserves to be free and living.
Or, the Boondock Saints.
I'm a recovering heroin addict, I did it for like 15 years. That first documentary really really made me sad. I know the hell, and the despair they must feel. If you're reading this, and you're struggling, just know that there is hope, and you're not alone. I've known about Vera's case for a long time, And it's fucking infuriating that everyone failed her. I just don't see how other people aren't in prison.
Congrats on recovery, definitely not a easy struggle 🕊️
Proud of you, recovering from such an addiction is nothing to sneeze at! Congratulations and hope you're enjoying your sobriety in good health 🙏🏻
Congrats on recovering!! I hope you'll have smooth journey
Holy smokes, congrats on recovery after dealing with your addiction for so long! I just hit 3.5 years sober from alcohol and pills. Literally never thought it would end. If we can do it, anyone can ❤
I’m soo proud of you baby !!! We love you.
Chapters :
1:53 The Last Stop
13:16 Goodnigh, Sugar Babe, The Killing Of Vera Jo Reigle
25:15 The Family I Had
34:02 Who Took Johnny?
I feel sick thinking of that poor girl, Vera. What a horrific life of terror and pain. In a way, her death- getting murdered, is the only way she could escape because so many people failed to protect or save her. That’s the most bleak but honest outlook on a person’s life… to say that getting murdered put her out of her man made misery. 😫😔😭 Rest In Peace Vera Jo.
So heartbreaking, I had to pause but had to keep going to hear Vera story. Her story needs to be told loud and clear.
The worst part is that they couldn't even do that right and just left her to die. Even getting put out of her misery was tortuous and humiliating for her.
The family I had was BAFFLING because… how’re two psychiatrists going to suggest you RUN AWAY from your child (because he’s probably going to kill you) and you just decide to continue engaging??????? Good luck to them. I hate that these people have the ability to continue roaming the streets with the rest of us.
Luckily in 2021, Charity FINALLY went no contact with Paris.
Directly from her:
I completely walked away from my eldest child and have not looked back. It is one thing to be a child who makes horrible decisions. It is another thing altogether to be a 27-year-old man and keep making decisions that put your family at risk. The final straw was learning he was "involved" with a woman who lived 2 hours away from us and was out on bond for planning a mass shooting. Boundaries had been crossed too many times. I bought a gun, learned to shoot (I am REALLY good now), and said goodbye. I finally accepted it is okay to love him as my son, but really dislike the man he has become.
@@EraTreeThank you so much for posting this quote from her. I really appreciate it. It's good to know and I hope she stays safe and far, far away from that evil man.
God, those first two in particular were absolutely heartbreaking.
I'm not American, so I never heard about the troubled teen industry until MrJoeNobody started doing his comic on the Elan school. I haven't finished reading it yet. Don't know if I ever will. It's just... so difficult to imagine what those victims went through, and how they must have felt. I've dealt with abuse, but nothing anywhere near that scale, and learning about Elan disgusted me to my very core. The entire industry still does.
I feel so sorry for anyone who had the misfortune to be taken to one of those places.
It's horrific that these places are still legally allowed to operate -- yet more evidence that America doesn't value its children.
I can tell you that the police in Iowa are pretty much still the same as they were in the 80s. The father of my children went to live with his dad in Davenport Iowa in 2014 and 2 months later he was killed, shot 4 times in the chest and once in the abdomen. No one was charged with his murder, it didn't even seem like they investigated or talked to anyone.and 6 months later his father that he went to live with was found dead near tbe Mississippi River. He was a fisherman his whole life, he would have never drowned and his keys and wallet were taken out of his pants and left on a rock outside the water. And no his family doesn't think he killed himself. He had 5 other kids with him in Iowa and the circumstances were all very weird. And again, no real investigation, no real suspects connected to it. So it has been 9 years and we still have no answers. It makes no sense and it's infuriating. Our two children who were only 4 and 5 at the time have to grow up not even knowing their father and not knowing why he was taken away. It's not fair
I can kind of see why didn't investigate his father that thoroughly even though they should've, I mean he did lose his child. But a presumably young(?) guy like your partner who's new to the area randomly getting shot should've been taken incredibly seriously.
Either way I'm very sorry for your loss and hope I didn't come off too dismissive.
Damn, GG, you just made me, a 50 year old hardened by life man literally cry with the story of Vera's last minutes on Earth! That poor, poor girl and that wicked, abusive manipulator 🤬🤬🤬 What the eff is wrong with these "families" and my lawd, WTAF were the police playing at? So, so much wrong with the whole story, my brain is struggling to comprehend it?! Wow😢😢😢
This is part of why I've never been scared of fictional horror media even as a little kid. Real life humans are capable of so many more horrific things. When people talk about some of the scariest and most disturbing horror media the monsters depicted are always humans.
I’ve got a story to tell that relates to this video, when you made a video talking about Dear Zachary I just had to watch it. I broke down multiple times during it, so I had to get my dad to watch it. I could count on one hand how many times he cried in the past 21 years of my life. After watching dear Zachary, he was more of a mess than I was, the man is otherwise the biggest stone wall I know. to this day I think Dear Zachary is the most powerful doc I’ve ever watched. An incredible story I have GG to thank for showing people like me
The emotions don't just disappear, they either go out or stay inside, gathering there, until, inevitable, they come out, trust me
Dear Zachary got me fucked up. I did no research before hand and went in raw. I don't think I'd watch it again, even to show someone else. Absolutely devastating.
If someone held a gun to my head and told me to either watch Dear Zachary or A Serbian Film, I’ll choose the later. At least I’d know it’s not real and just a bunch of actors acting. 😰
There’s also a book from Zachary’s grandpa, David Bagby, that provides more details about the case, the aftermath, and how he and his wife were coping with the loss of their son and grandson. It’s called “Dance with the Devil: A Memoir of Murder and Loss.” There’s even an audiobook version if you’re interested.
Idk, something about this case just stuck with me so I picked up the book immediately after.
I know a lot of people refuse to say what dear zachary is about because spoilers but I show me, I won't be able to watch it if it's as disturbing as people say so can someone quickly say what it's abt?
My stomach churned hearing Vera’s story, It still hurts me to my soul knowing there are many many people out there like the monsters that abused poor Vera 😔 I cant even fathom it sometimes. Hearing stories like Vera’s I have to stop myself sometimes from thinking about it too much or I would just spiral, especially having children and also suffering from domestic abuse😔
The black haired woman in the sugar babe documentary having a Taco Bell cup filled with milk sitting around behind her told me everything I needed to know about how she was somehow complicit with that murder
Taco Bell cup filled with milk makes her a potential criminal? How? Not trying to start anything, honestly curious.
@@seanrosenau2088me too. Maybe I’m too sheltered.
@@AmbiguousProxy I asked the question before I watched that scene. The lady looks like what most would call Trailer Trash and apparently reusing fast food containers is a stereotype of being Trailer Trash. LOL.
@@seanrosenau2088 i thought the comment was implying a cognitive disability but idk
@@AlienZiziit was definitely implying she was white trailer trash but ok.
Vera’s story is so heartbreaking, it blows my mind how brutal a lot of people are and the amount of people that live in the conditions Vera lived. There was little to no justice to her, hope karma gets all the family and people who hurt her in any possible way
Vera's case reminded me of Sylvia Likens case, which is... Terrible. Terrible, terrible.
I was in a lot of "children's psychiatric inpatients" run by a place called Trillium. I STILL, to this day, have night terrors about being sent/ trapped there. I could go on for hours about the horrors I witnessed and endured firsthand. And that was in the early 2010's. I can not imagine how much worse these places were before the internet and when adults were much more willing to blindly trust a supposed authority figure, no matter what.
Those places gotta be shut down fr kids are sensitive they can't handle the chaos of an inpatient. What kids need is stability. They need to stay at home with a nurse who can watch them and make sure that they learn the things they need to learn and who can protect them from any possible at-home abuse.
Typical Government Program.
i got curious so i looked into goodnight sugar bear before watching this video and god, its SO much worse than gg was able to get into, he was not joking. that poor poor woman, Vera wanted to escape repeated S abuse but died cold, naked, in pain and not able to be the best mother she could be. I hope all of that family rots with the way they were talking about her and what they did. Vera Jo deserved so much better, the neighbors who tried to get police involved and even *save* the kids while they were growing up must feel some guilt or defeat about what happened in that home.
it makes me so fucking sick Cheri got a slap on the wrist for being a murderer and p*dophile (as young as TODDLERS mind you. i do not want to think about what she wouldve done to baby willadean or what they couldve done to her in the time span.)
Cheri was so much worse than described, she had 5 children removed from her care because of what she did especially to her one year old, the one she had with her cousin. Abuse can create abusers, but im so sick about what she did.
Paris is an absolute monster, and one note that wasn't mentioned here was that he had a genius-level IQ when he was tested, like so many sociopaths throughout history.
@tealppup5180 I totally agree that IQ is a load of garbage 😂 I'm just regurgitating info I heard from another vid about this.
It's actually not all that much of a thing? For as many "genius" sociopaths/psychopaths, there are an equal amount of incredibly unintelligent ones.
Was I prepared to watch a video about disturbing documentaries and real life horrors tonight? No. But this is Mista GG and I can always trust that no matter how bad it gets he does his best to be as respectful to the victims and to his audience as he can. Now I’m gonna watch some of his more lighthearted content to settle down for the night. Thank you GG for all that you do.
Same. I was not prepared. I thought it was gunna be like a couple of movies that were fucked up... Not documentaries that make you wanna walk your kid to the mailbox in the front yard with a shotgun. So now I'm gunna watch some cartoons so I don't have nightmares.. probably ed edd n eddy
I was in an institution called Clarinda Academy. And the place is shockingly similar to Elan. It was owned by a company called Sequel. My year at Clarinda was the worst year of my entire life and I've still not recovered. The things I witnessed and went through while there will haunt me. I'm glad I got closed.
Its so crazy you mention JFK on the 60th anniversary of his death. RIP
Edit: I wasn't trying to be funny, I genuinely did not expect it which is why I mentioned it.
I took the top off
you just blew my mind 😱
gg was at the grassy null, confirmed
It's not a coincidence
@@sincerityiscaryfunniest 6th grader:
Almost sensing a theme in this particular batch. legitimately terrifying how careless and often apathetic those with "real" authority can be
Wow that “treatment center” is even worse than the one my ex was sent to in southern utah for getting caught smoking weed. They did the same wall punishment but never for that long, still horrific. My ex was so brainwashed he went back to work there and even got a tattoo of the name on his chest. I didn’t realize how bad the whole thing was until he took me to visit to celebrate his birthday a few weeks after our wedding. These types of places need to be shut down.
I was in 8th grade when Vera Jo was murdered. I remember the whole town being shaken bc murders just didn’t (and still don’t) just happen in Findlay. You didn’t seem to touch on how batshit crazy Sheri was, and hearing her side of the story is messy
Police officers attempt to do their job challenge. Difficulty *IMPOSSIBLE*
Nothing will ever beat "Dear Zachary." I think it's because it was so well done and if you go into it without knowing much, it punches you right in the gut. You could walk into a room full of people and just say "Dear Zachary" and everyone who has seen it will have some kind of reaction. "Oh no! That was SO sad. I cried for a week!" Something like that is the general response.
this movie literally destroyed my soul. when the credits wherw rolling i was just sitting there on my couch with big fat tears coming down my face.
What is it about?
So much of this is common for disabled people to be sent to abusive things. My sister won’t let my niece go to ANYTHING that “helps autistic girls” cause she watched them all break me
27:16 is a perfect parody of every current applebees ad ever
Love this series. I enjoy your humor but when the time calls for seriousness, you also deliver in a way that is just as engaging. I immensely respect your restraint in not trying to overcompensate with an overabundance of silliness to counteract the disturbing nature of these films (documentaries like Just Melvin, Just Evil, for example, deserve nothing but the utmost consideration and sensitivity given how absolutely sordid the subject matter is, and you gave us that in the last installment). Again, great work GG. You're one of my favorite youtubers for a reason.
GG! Thank you for spreading awareness about Vera’s story. I grew up in the city where Vera’s murder happened. I was to young to understand the events that were happening but after I learned about the events when I was older I was beyond nauseated. I just want to say again thank you for spreading awareness, those monsters could never be punished enough for what they did.
hey! I found your channel through your disturbing documentaries! it was Tickled! You said "hey check it out first before watching" and I went "ok let's see" loved it, then I came back and watched all your backlog!
10:42 _“He actually ran away and met a guy named “Sticks” in the woods…”_
*Thats a crazy sentence*
Right when I start having faith in humanity once again I here stories like this and I remember just how terrible and evil people are and can be. This may be a hot take and insensitive but sometimes I just wish there was a vigilante out there avenging those who the justice system failed, ridding the earth of the nasty oozing cysts and cancerous tumors on our society who dont even deserve to called a human beings.
Vera's story broke my heart. My wife and I live about an hour away from where she's buried and we're in Findlay every so often- thinking next time we're going to go leave her some flowers.
this is definitely one of my favorite series of yours. keep doing these.
The story of Vera is so horribly Sad. Its so frustrating that these people exist.
I remember throughout the years I went to summer program (it was supposed to help with remembering subjects for school) and I met a lot of really cool people who were normally in schools for troubled teens. I heard a lot of horror stories too from them and it breaks my heart, they're wonderful and I really hope that they're doing well now. I can only imagine how awful it is with the Elan school and how it was even allowed to stay open as long as it has.
What I appreciate about the internet is that people I know are more aware of places like this now, along with the troubled teen industry.
The worst part about Vera Jo's abuse is having her babu withheld from her. She's in the same room, but not able to hold her or speak to her. As a mom, that kills me. I can't imagine being tortured for hugging my child.
The Elan story reminds me of the White House boys of Marianna, FL. What happened in Marianna is one of the most disturbing things that's ever happened in this country and to think it went on for decades is unbelievable, especially since the entire town was in on it.
I highly recommend looking it up if you haven't heard of it, but be prepared. It's dark as hell. I mean there were bodies of children discovered on the grounds just a few years ago and there are believed to be many more that haven't been discovered yet.
Call me crazy but, Paris killing Ella, is terrible and he deserves the worst for it. I can understand his mom “forgiving” him as to not lose both of her kids. However if I found out my 13 year old son assaulted my 4 year old daughter as well as murdering her???? He would never ever be forgiven. I’m not saying I can excuse murder. But I 100% cannot fathom forgiving murder and assault. Also charity saying “Achilles was killed….. by Paris!” Is fucking crazy hello???
Last time I saw someone forgive a killer it went like this
He killed her mom, she forgave him and hired him in the store he killed her mom in. He then kills her in the store too
Yesss, been waiting for the revisit to disturbing docs. Absolute bangers every time. I'd still love to hear your thoughts on Dear Zachary considering you were the entire reason I watched it.
What
Alec is from my hometown and he’s been deceased for about 4yrs now. Devastating. I never knew he went to this school until seeing the doc. Postmortem.
Mista GG, You are a VERY STRONG man for watching these Docs and being able to summarize them back to us. I don't have the stomach for it man. It angers me that this kind of abuse has happened.
Okay, so I know it’s a very serious video of docs… but I’m crying from laughing so hard at myself because when you cut to singing as an Applebees wing ad I really thought the video cut off for an ad and I grabbed my remote, cause I’m watching on my TV, waiting for the skip option to show up 😂 I walked away for a few seconds to feed my cat so I wasn’t fully paying attention and just heard the transition from pause to singing… I’m dying! 😂
Been watching your videos for years man, just wanted to say it's been so awesome getting to see your method, presentation, and attitude evolve over the years. You've supplied top tier content from day one, and it keeps gettin better! Long as you're posting, I'm watching!
I remember Wendigoon talking about the disappearance of Johnny and Martin and the beginning of the milk carton campaign. Unfortunate that it didn’t really achieve anything and that a lot of kids on those weren’t actually missing, just teens that went out to party for a few days or something
I don't believe I've ever seen GG as upset as he did when talking about Vera's life and her murder. He usually crack jokes that help with the darkness of the topic in a dark humor way. He couldn't even do that, he just wanted up to sit with it and the disturbing nature of it.
i was thinking the same :( you can tell how much this story struck somethung in him
Thank you I was rewatching all of the vids can’t belive you made a new one
I stumbled upon the Sugarbabe doc and also thought it was made in the late 90’s. The story is also so horrible, and then we find out that most of the people involved got away with the abuse.
I find most of the documentaries I've seen come in three flavors: absolutely disturbing, frustrating, or a bitter blend of the two.
The only one that I can think of that didn't leave me feeling worse after was Dave Not Coming Back, just because of the love on display from the people involved in the events. It was very sad to say the least, but not something that made me feel helpless afterward. Highly recommend that one. It's about the death of a diver and the efforts to retrieve his body from an incredibly dangerous diving location.
(I should note, this isn't a recommendation for GG's disturbing docs series, just for people in general. It's not disturbing in the same way these docs are.)
GOD that doc is genuinely my favorite, I cried
I love all your other videos, but especially love when you cover “disturbing” documentaries. It absolutely intrigues me at the backstory and real world info related to these f*cked up people and stories. Thanks gg, I hope you continue this in the future !
Amazing as always, GG. I'm from Maine and Elan is awful. Its clear the students who thought it helped are still in so much pain. I hope they get the healing they need.
The lack of police accountability in cases like these is heartbreaking
I marathoned a crap load of your videos the other day. You're one of my new-favorite-RUclips-recommended channels 👍
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The arguably worst part of all of these disturbing docs is learning every single little way the system can fail you and wondering how many similar or worse cases out there never got solved, the victims never got help, and the perpetrators never got punished.
These monsters need to pray to and thank their deity of choice that people didn’t execute them after these docs. How the hell is Sherry even alive still? Like I get it. People have self control. But, good lord these docs are infuriating.
Honestly, when you started describing the sugar baby documentary, I was GAGGED every turn to the story is so unexpected
the merch: www.mista.gg
Whaddup GG!
Bedtime gonna have to wait. It's GG time!!!
Imagine if he just does the TCAP series again. Nobody would complain. lol.
Look into Sylvia Lickens. 😢
yo cheers
“Gradually it was disclosed to me that the line separating good and evil passes not through states, nor between classes, nor between political parties either -- but right through every human heart -- and through all human hearts. This line shifts. Inside us, it oscillates with the years. And even within hearts overwhelmed by evil, one small bridgehead of good is retained. And even in the best of all hearts, there remains ... an unuprooted small corner of evil.
Since then I have come to understand the truth of all the religions of the world: They struggle with the evil inside a human being (inside every human being). It is impossible to expel evil from the world in its entirety, but it is possible to constrict it within each person.”
― Aleksandr I. Solzhenitsyn, The Gulag Archipelago 1918-1956
Goodnight sugar babe happened in my hometown when I was a jr in HS. I recognized a lot of the people in it but the craziest part is that the city kept it pretty hush hush. Like most of us didn’t even hear about it until the doc came out.
I love this series you do. Have you ever heard of the Steven Stayner case?
When I was 9 to 11 years old I had a friend named Dennis Parnell. He was a great kid. Nice, funny, kind of quiet. He lived with his dad, Ken, in a trailer up a long dirt road (this was in the middle of the woods in Northern California). Ken was a nasty little man. Angry, never talked, smelled awful and perved on little boys (my brother went to the trailer to hang out once, and never went back because he said Ken had made them watch porn and tried to get them drunk).
We moved away when I was 12. When I was 14, my mom sat us down and told us that Dennis had run away, and that it turned out Ken wasn't his father. Dennis was actually Steven Stayner, who was kidnapped from the streets of Merced when he was 7 years old, by Ken and an accomplice. He'd been held by Ken for 7 years. Ken told Steven that his parents didn't want him anymore and had given Ken the right to adopt him. That his new name was Dennis. Ken SA'd Steven the entire 7 years until Steven was 14, and that made him "too old" to be attractive to Ken anymore. Ken then went out and kidnapped another little boy, Timothy. Steven/Dennis watched as Ken dyed Timothy's hair and told him his parents had given him to Ken to raise. Steven/Dennis realised: Oh, that's what he did to ME, and it was BS then as it is now. He waited until Ken left, then took Timothy and got him to a sheriff's station. He told the cops "I know my first name is Steven". Ken was arrested and tried, but the SA abuses were not part of it, because people thought it would be too hard for Steven to talk about. So Ken got 7 years in prison on the kidnapping charges. Steven went home to his family, but died in his 20s in a motorcycle accident. The kid I knew as Dennis was an amazing, great guy and I was horrified to find out what he'd been going through the whole time we were friends.
There's a few docs on this story. The most recent one is 'Captive Audience - A Real American Horror Story', and it's pretty good. I'd love to see you cover it.
Sad footnote to this already horrific tale: Steven's brother, Cary Stayner, turned out to be a serial killer - the Yosemite cases from the 90s. Totally unrelated to Steven's story, as far as I know; just a freaking awful coincidence.
BTW, Ken was released after 7 years and I kept track of him as best I could. In the 90s I found out he was living in the same town I was and I called the cops to make sure they knew who this monster really was. They told me they knew and were keeping a close eye on him. Not too long after, Ken was arrested for trying to buy an infant boy from his Meals On Wheels lady. She told the cops, they wired her up and she went back in, and they got Ken dead to rights. He spent the rest of his miserable life at Atascadero prison - where CA keeps the worst of the worst. And he died in 2008. I threw a party that day.
Anyway, RIP Steven/Dennis - a really great guy and a hero for saving Timothy White from the same horrors he went through.
Check out “Somethings wrong with Aunt Dianne” and “Tell Me Who I Am.” That last one will fucking body you
Marking this comment so I can watch it later
Those are both amazing documentaries.
Aunt Diane is so sad because it's SO OBVIOUS she had substance abuse problems but her family refuses to accept it. I feel so bad for the kids.
Tell Me Who I Am is devastating, coming from somebody who experienced abuse growing up.
Both stellar and I recommend both regularly to other people.
The main isse I have with "The fanily I had" is how It fear mongers in demonizes disorders like schizophrenia and ASPD ( antisocial personality disorder ) which are not as villainous as people tend to think. I have schizoaffective disorder which is essentially just schizophrenia with a mood disorder. And it's really just frustrating to see how within a lot of these docs They don't seem to challenge a lot of the stigma that comes with and goes towards mental health issues especially when it comes to psychotic disorders or personality disorders. Are those actions of Paris horrific? absolutely. But are they telling of what it's like for many people who have ASPD? No. But I understand that it was also kind of just a thing of the time that it came out. So I just want people to be aware of those things and the biases that come with these kind of docks going into them.
I also really can empathize with the mother of well yes you should be getting your kid with homicidal tendencies mental health help, I have been in long-term treatment facilities and there is a lot of stuff that goes on in there that you just don't hear about. I was never sexually abused but you would be surprised at how many people I hear about and have friends who were within it. The one thing that stuck with me is that I came in and was having a huge panic attack and one of the staff threatened me with chemical restraints if I didn't calm down. The things that I have seen there and the way that they treated other people, especially kids just with anger issues, we're very upsetting to put it lightly. So I can understand in a way why the mother would be hesitant to put him in a treatment facility. But my empathy can also only go so far when she is literally being warned by everyone around her that he is going to hurt someone and that she needs to even afterwards change her full identity so that he can't find her and kill her.
Genuinely the story of elan is haunting, i first learned about it from a video essay from Nexpo and christ- the stuff that went down in that place until 2011 was horrendous
The Johnny Gosch story haunts me…I feel like this happens so often and the authorities/community leaders/elected officials are in on it bc they benefit from it in one way or another. And then there’s Larry King(not the suspendered late night host)oh my goodness- the embodiment of evil who was able to get away with a majority of his depraved crimes….it’s maddening
This was exactly what I needed tonight while I work an overnight shift. Thanks GG!
Bro I just got of a 12 hour overnight. 😂 You and me both, these videos make my life so much less painful.
Damn have I been a hard sell, but who knew American Mary is the straw that would break me. Patreon here I come.
I have been missing these SOOO MUCH! Rewatched the others about 6 times
My adoptive parents shipped me off to the troubled teen industry, and i personally didnt suffer any physical abuse, but i saw plenty, and was put through lots of the psychological kind. These places all need to be shut down
I dont think ive seen GG this shook over a movie maybe ever, and ive been here since we were still joshin on aunt viv. Big ups for the video, man. We appreciate you
The Achilles heel thing was great.
"He got killed...by Paris..."
A note: it's no longer called multiple personality disorder. It's referred to as dissociative identity disorder (DID). It's a complicated illness.
Yeah! It's so sad to see, but unfortunately not surprising, that no one believed the person with DID about the trafficking. Trafficking survivors will usually have c-PTSD, and again, commonly have DID due to the abuse as a child. He was telling them actual facts, that could have been putting himself in danger if the group that trafficked him found out, and yet no one believed him? ugh.
Why the name change?
@@notsojoeroganits a more accurate representation of what the disorder is
Just found your channel and not only am ai disturbed but also hooked.
welcome to the lang of gg content :)
I am soooo with ya, yo i havent even finished this video yet because of rewinding so many times but YES SPREAD AWARENESS. AND ACTIVILY PREVENT THIS SHITE. THIS SHIT MUST STOP NOW. We serious need active action and harsh penalties for abusers. The worst part is things like this get dug up after the fact. Im honestly heartbroken here yall.