J.“E.”L. v. Charest

L.A. J.L.A., J.S.A., and K.A.

Thirteen-year-old triplet siblings J.L.A., J.S.A., and K.A., along with their 14-year-old sister L.A., each have mental and behavioral health diagnoses. Despite their mother’s ongoing efforts to access community-based behavioral and mental health services to keep them at home, the siblings have cycled through numerous in-patient hospitals, outpatient programs, and in-home services over the years.

In just two years, J.L.A. has been in three hospitals and spent 403 days in out-of-home placements. J.S.A. has been in six hospitals, spending a total of 565 days away from home. K.A. has been hospitalized three times, totaling 463 days in residential placements, where she was discharged twice without any community-based services in place. Currently, J.L.A. and J.S.A. live in a group home more than 2.5 hours from their family, while K.A., who was not referred for further services, resides in a center for autism and developmental disabilities.

Their sister L.A. has faced similar challenges. In 2018 alone, she was hospitalized eight times, including one instance where she was readmitted within 30 days of being discharged. Between February 2018 and July 2024, she experienced 12 hospitalizations, with the longest lasting 201 consecutive days. In total, L.A. has spent 542 days in hospitals and an additional 322 days in residential placements, amounting to 864 days—2.4 years—away from home.

All four siblings wish to remain at home with the appropriate support in place, where they can enjoy the things they love, surrounded by family.

T.C.

T.C. is a 17-year-old transgender male and self-advocate with a passion for music. He lives with mental health conditions that significantly limit his ability to participate in daily life activities, including family, school, and community involvement. His grandparents and legal guardians, Donna and Paul Truppi, have long sought community-based services to support him at home, but the state has failed to provide medically necessary behavioral health services for T.C.

As a result, T.C. has spent an extended period in various placements, including over a year at a facility with known allegations of abuse and neglect. While there, he was subjected to mistreatment; all youth were eventually removed. Due to a months-long waitlist for essential services that could bring him home, T.C. was forced to remain at the facility. For two weeks, he was the only young person there and received no clinical services. He eventually returned to his grandparents’ home without any supports in place. Without access to the services he needs, T.C. faces a serious risk of being unnecessarily institutionalized again and experiencing further deterioration of his mental health.