Mistrial Declared in New Hampshire Youth Detention Center Abuse Case

Jurors deadlocked on charges against Stephen Murphy, who still faces 15 additional charges in other cases related to 1990s abuse allegations.

Stephen Murphy, a former worker at the Sununu Youth Services Center, was accused of raping a 14-year-old boy in 1998, but the jury was unable to reach a verdict.
This is the second mistrial related to abuse allegations at the state-run youth detention facility, which has been the focus of a sweeping investigation since 2019.
Murphy faces 15 additional charges involving three other boys, with trials scheduled throughout 2025, starting in April.
The investigation into the facility has led to 11 arrests; two individuals have been convicted, one case resulted in another mistrial, and other cases are ongoing.
The Sununu Youth Services Center, formerly housing over 100 children, is set to be replaced with a smaller facility following years of abuse allegations spanning six decades.