Months after teen dies in Wordsworth treatment home, CEO quietly leaves her job

The president and chief executive officer of Wordsworth, a residential treatment center for troubled young people, has quietly left her post, months after a child died in the care of the West Philadelphia facility and the state ordered it closed.

Debra Lacks, who led the agency for eight years, was replaced by Diana Ramsay, who was named interim CEO, Wordsworth officials said Friday.

Lacks' departure comes three months after a 17-year-old boy died in a fight with staffers who accused him of stealing an iPod. And it follows the December arrest of a former staffer who is charged with sexually assaulting three girls in the program.

In a terse three-paragraph statement, Wordsworth welcomed Ramsay and made no mention of Lacks or the turmoil that has engulfed the program in recent months.

"Debbie is no longer with Wordsworth," said Stephanie Shell, the agency's director of organizational advancement.

"She's just no longer with Wordsworth," said board chairman Tom Johnson. "That's all I can really say at this moment."

Efforts to reach Lacks were unsuccessful Friday.

Ramsay, the interim leader, is a former president and CEO of Woods, a Langhorne-based program for people with behavioral and intellectual disabilities. She could not be reached for comment Friday.

In addition to the now-shuttered treatment facility, Wordsworth offers educational programs, mental health services, and foster care, and does case-management work for the city Department of Human Services.

The state Department of Human Services ordered the residential program closed in late October, saying conditions posed "a serious danger to the health and safety of residents." The closure followed the Oct. 13 death of David Hess, 17, of Lebanon, Pa.

Hess died after a clash with staffers who went to his room in search of a stolen iPod. Video captured one staffer pushing and shoving Hess in a hallway while escorting him to his room shortly after 8 p.m. In the confrontation that followed, three staffers flipped over his bed and tossed furniture around, according to a report by the state DHS.

Hess grew agitated, the report said, and three staffers attempted to restrain him. One held his legs as another punched him repeatedly in the ribs, according to the report.

Soon after, the report said, Hess began gasping for breath, saying, "Get off me, I can't breathe." Then, it said, the room fell silent.

No one has been charged in connection with his death, which is under investigation by Philadelphia police, the city Medical Examiner's Office, and DHS.

James Garrow, a spokesman for the Medical Examiner's Office, said Friday that a report on the cause and manner of death was not yet complete.

Officials with the city Department of Human Services have declined to comment on Hess' death while the investigations are underway. In a statement Friday, a spokeswoman for DHS Commissioner Cynthia Figueroa said she supported Wordsworth's leadership and had spoken to Ramsay to offer support.

Before ordering the facility to shut down, state officials had repeatedly cited Wordsworth for unsafe building conditions, lapses in training, and instances of improper restraints. Earlier this year, it ordered Wordsworth to step up security and surveillance in the building after the three girls reported that they had been sexually assaulted by staffer Isaac Outten.

Outten, 37, is charged with institutional sexual assault, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, corruption of minors, and other crimes. Police say he repeatedly had sex with three girls in the program, ages 15 to 17, luring them to the basement for sex and forcing them to take naked selfies with his iPhone.

One girl, 15, said Outten promised her money for diapers for her 1-year-old child in exchange for oral sex and intercourse. Another girl, 17, said he offered to help her with a criminal case in exchange for sex and naked selfies. And the third girl, also 17, said Outten took her to the basement for sex and warned her not to tell anyone or he would get into trouble.

Outten, of Henrico, Va., has pleaded not guilty and is awaiting trial.