First of nearly 1,200 lawsuits against New Hampshire youth detention center set for trial

David Meehan's case is the first of over 1,000 in an unprecedented criminal investigation into physical and sexual abuse at New Hampshire's state-run youth detention center.

Eleven former state workers face criminal charges, and dozens more are accused in the nearly 1,200 lawsuits former residents have filed against the state alleging abuse spanning six decades. The first lawsuit, filed by Meehan four years ago, goes to trial this week.

"It’s heartwarming in a way to know that I helped these other people find the strength to be able to speak the truth about their experience," Meehan told The Associated Press in 2021. "But at the same time, it hurts in a way that I can’t explain, knowing that so many other people were exposed to the same types of things that I was."