Mother of deceased teen sues Parmadale

The mother of a teen who died at Parmadale Family Services in December after being restrained by staff filed a wrongful death lawsuit Tuesday against the facility, Catholic Charities and three women believed to be involved in the restraint.

The Cleveland Plain Dealer reported today tha the suit, filed in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court, alleges that Parmadale didn't properly screen, train or supervise its employees.

It also says that 17-year-old Faith Finley experienced "severe conscious physical pain and suffering" before she died at Parmadale.

Cuyahoga County Coroner Frank Miller ruled Faith's death a homicide.

The suit accuses the staff members of acting negligently or recklessly in using force to restrain Faith.

The coroner's office could not determine when Faith was last seen alive because of inconsistent stories by Parmadale staff, according to an investigator's report. When an ambulance crew members arrived, they noted Faith was cold to the touch, suggesting she had been dead for awhile.

Parmadale fired three women in February after a state review of a teen's death found employees failed to follow the facility's policies.

It is unclear if the women named in the suit are the same women who were fired. Parmadale declined to release their names.

The suit names them as Cynthia King of Warrensville Heights, Lazarita Menendez of Bedford Heights and Ebony Ray of Broadview Heights. King and Ray did not return calls for comment. Menendez could not be reached.

Tom Mullen, of Catholic Charities which runs Parmadale, did not return a call for comment.

A review done after Faith's death by the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services, which licenses the cottage where Faith was staying, said Faith's rights were violated when staff members restrained her because she had the right to be free of "physical abuse and inhumane treatment."

Click on the headline to read the full story in the Plain Dealer.