World Of Shocking (no humour)

Tranquility Bay was a correctional facility for wayward juveniles, based in Jamaica.

Its owner and director, Jay Kay, a bankrupt college dropout who formerly worked as a petrol station attendent, decided to establish a reform-school to which American parents would send their 'deliquent' children (some as young as 12) to be moulded into model citizens.

These teenage tearaways had committed such crimes as being disrespectful to their parents, smoking, having sex, having friends their parents disproved of and in one case smoking a joint.

To reform them they were sent to Tranquility Bay, sometimes after being forcibly removed from their homes, with parental consent (Shannon Levy-Rowley, for example, was handcuffed during her journey and later attempted suicide).

Their parents would legally grant Mr Kay 49% custody, agree to have no contact with the children for up to 12 months, waive the right to prosecute/sue if harm came to their offspring and pay him up to $40,000 a year for the privilege.

Tranquility opened its doors in 1997 and was finally closed down in 2009. (Here and here are parts 1 & 2 of a Guardian/Observer article from 2003 on the establishment.)

In the intervening years the staff (qualifications required: high-school education) employed psychological and physical abuse in order to correct the inmates.

Day-to-day live consisted of grinding prison monotony. Education consisted of reading from text books in silence and making notes. Submission to the system resulted in gaining 'credits', allowing one to progress from level-1 (forbidden from speaking or even moving without permission) to higher levels at which one could not only speak, but could also recommend punishments for kids at lower levels for disobedience.

Ah yes, punishment. Solitary confinement seems to have been frequently employed for teens misguided enough to break rules (or even complain at their treatment), as well as forcing them to lie on their face for hours at a time. If they struggled they might be forcibly thrown to the ground or into the nearest wall.

One girl was forced to spend 18 months (yes, you read that correctly) lying face down - she was allowed to stretch once every hour. Former inmates have reported staff breaking jaws and using weapons ranging from woodern planks to a radio.

One 17 yr-old girl, Valerie Ann Heron, threw herself to her death from a balcony at the facility. A 15 yr-old boy, Kerry Lane Brown, was pepper-sprayed 2/3 times a day over an 8 month period. Following his release he was repeatedly hospitalised due to PTSD and died in 2006 aged 24.

Incidentally, the company which handled the licensed-kidnapping of the youngsters was run by a man named Rick Strawn who previously quit his job as an Atlanta policeman rather than face an internal investigation over allegations he beat and molested his stepdaughter.

Tranquility Bay closed its doors in 2009 due to a decline in business.

Its parent company WWASPS (run by Jay Kay's father, coincidentally) is still operational, although a visit to the Wikipedia link will provide examples of the many cases of child abuse associated with the company.

Credit to TVTropes for the link to Guardian/Observer newsletter. Words my own and validated by sources provided.