Michigan

Facilities in Michigan

Residential facilities providing religious, behavioral, and mental health treatment to children exist in all 50 states. Some of these facilities are known to be part of the Troubled Teen Industry, while others have not yet been verified. Any facility where children live and receive care requires additional oversight. This directory helps communities monitor local programs and advocate for accountability.

Reporting abuse in Michigan

Michigan puts abuse in a child caring institution through the same centralised intake line as any other child abuse report, and its own guidance says a child can make that call themselves. Reports are then passed to whoever should investigate - law enforcement, or the licensing bureau. Licensing the facility and licensing the therapist are separate departments: MDHHS for the institution, LARA for the clinician.

Time limits in Michigan: a general guide

This was correct as far as we could tell when we checked it on 28 September 2026. Laws on time limits change often, sometimes every legislative session, so some of what follows may have been updated since. It is a starting point, not legal advice: please check with a lawyer before relying on any date here. A time limit on a lawsuit or a criminal charge is also not a time limit on telling someone, and most of the places listed below will still take a report.

Time limits for abuse of a child often run from the survivor's 18th birthday, or from when they came to understand what happened, rather than from the day the program closed. Many states have lengthened them, removed them for child sexual abuse, or reopened claims that had already expired. A criminal charge, a lawsuit and a licence complaint each have their own time limit, so one having passed does not necessarily mean the others have.

Lawsuits

Physical abuse or injury: Two years from the injury for assault, battery or false imprisonment; three years for negligence and other personal injury claims. Mich. Comp. Laws § 600.5805(2), (3)
If it happened before you turned 18: If the injured person was under 18 when the claim arose, they have until one year after turning 18 (their 19th birthday) to sue, even if the normal period has run; if the normal period ends later, that later date applies. Mich. Comp. Laws § 600.5851(1)
If the program was run by or for the government: Less certain For a personal-injury claim against the State of Michigan, a written claim or notice of intent must be filed with the Court of Claims clerk within 6 months of the event. Mich. Comp. Laws § 600.6431(1), (4)
Child sexual abuse: CSA: The civil SOL for CSA claims is age 28 with a 3-year discovery rule. Trafficking: the civil SOL for trafficking claims is age 28. CSAM: The civil SOL for CSAM claims is age 19. CHILD USA's summary

Criminal charges

Physical child abuse: Less certain Six years from the crime for child abuse in any degree. The clock does not wait until the child turns 18. Mich. Comp. Laws § 767.24(10); Mich. Comp. Laws § 750.136b
Assault: Less certain Six years from the crime for felonious assault and assault with intent to do great bodily harm; ten years for assault with intent to commit murder. Misdemeanor assault and battery also appears to fall under the six-year catch-all. Mich. Comp. Laws § 767.24(6), (10)
Child sexual abuse: CSA: There is no SOL for first degree criminal sexual conduct, while the SOL is either age 21, 25, or 28 for other crimes, with a DNA rule. Trafficking: There is no SOL for trafficking. CSAM: The SOL for CSAM is the later of 10 years from the offense or age 21. CHILD USA's summary

The injury, assault and physical abuse lines are our reading of the statutes linked, as they stood on 28 September 2026. The child sexual abuse lines are CHILD USA's summary as it stood on 28 September 2026; their page may be more current than ours. In them SOL means statute of limitations, CSA child sexual abuse, and CSAM child sexual abuse material. "Less certain" marks a line where the law is unclear or where our reading has not been confirmed, so please treat it with extra care. Exceptions, court rulings and the details of what happened can all change which time limit applies, and some of these may be longer or shorter for you than they look here. CHILD USA's statute of limitations tracker, updated as each state changes its law. A lawyer can tell you which time limit applies to you, and many offer a free first consultation.

The therapist's licensing board

Holds the individual clinician's licence and can suspend or revoke it.

Michigan LARA, Bureau of Professional Licensing

Multiple professions

Takes complaints against counselors, marriage and family therapists, psychologists, social workers and other health professionals, assigns an investigator, gathers documents and interviews the professional complained about.

If the documents and interviews do not establish a violation, the investigation ends and the file is closed.

Use this whenAny licensed mental health professional in Michigan. Anyone can file.

HowComplete the Bureau's complaint form and send it in. It asks whether any civil action or police report is pending, and whether you would be willing to testify at an administrative hearing.

The agency that licenses the program

Inspects the facility itself and can cite, fine, suspend or close it.

Michigan MDHHS, Division of Child Welfare Licensing

Licenses child caring institutions, children's foster homes and child placing agencies in Michigan, and investigates licensing complaints against them.

Use this whenThe facility - how it is run, staffed and supervised, as distinct from a specific allegation of abuse, which goes to centralised intake.

HowUse the Division's online complaint form, or its complaint page.

Law enforcement and legal channels

Child protection, the Attorney General, and the criminal side.

Michigan Centralized Intake for Abuse and Neglect

The statewide 24-hour line for abuse or neglect of any child or adult, including abuse of a child in a child caring institution, a juvenile court operated facility or a children's foster home. Reports are passed to whoever should investigate - law enforcement, or the licensing bureau.

Use this whenA child at a Michigan program. Michigan says explicitly that anyone can report, including a child.

HowCall, at any hour.

1-855-444-3911 24 hours a day, every day.
More about this body

Oversight and advocacy

Bodies with a right to investigate, and advocates who can act for you.

Disability Rights Michigan

Michigan's Protection and Advocacy agency, with federal authority to investigate abuse and neglect of people with disabilities in facilities, a right of access to them, and free legal advocacy.

Use this whenA Michigan program where the young person has a disability or a mental health diagnosis.

HowContact the intake line.

1-800-288-5923 Main line 517-487-1755; TTY 517-374-4687.
More about this body

National reporting channels, and the same list for other states