Stephen Murphy, 55, from Danvers, Massachusetts, faces a total of 16 charges involving four minors who were residents at the Youth Development Center in Manchester during the late 1990s. In this particular case, he faces a charge of aggravated felonious sexual assault, which alleges that he raped a juvenile in a stairwell while colleagues held the teen down.
Michael Gilpatrick, who has accused Murphy, has already provided testimony regarding these allegations on two separate occasions. Initially, he testified in a civil trial connected to a different former resident of the youth center and subsequently in a criminal trial against Brad Asbury, another individual involved in the incident. Gilpatrick described Murphy and his associates as a “hit squad” that instilled fear among the children at the facility. He recalled, “The four of them used to roll together. They would literally come over and just go door to door and beat every single one of us, down the line.”
Asbury, 70, was convicted in November on two counts as an accomplice to aggravated sexual assault, with prosecutors suggesting he may serve as a witness in Murphy’s trial. Murphy has pleaded not guilty to the charges against him.
Both Murphy and another former employee were taken into custody in July 2019, linked to the sexual assault of David Meehan, who was the first among over 1,100 former residents to file suit against the state. They claim various forms of abuse—physical, sexual, and emotional—over spans of six decades. Murphy’s attorney, Charles Keefe, did not respond to requests for comment, but a previous attorney stated that Murphy has consistently denied all allegations, including those involving Meehan.
In conjunction with Murphy’s arrest, the state’s attorney general’s office initiated a comprehensive investigation into the youth facility, now known as the Sununu Youth Services Center. Since then, 11 individuals have been arrested in connection with the case; however, charges were dismissed against one due to insufficient evidence while another was deemed incompetent to stand trial, and a third individual died before trial. Murphy marks the fourth former employee to face a trial.
In addition to the conviction of Asbury, Stanley Watson was found guilty this week on three counts of aggravated sexual assault affecting two boys. Another trial ended in a hung jury and is scheduled for a retrial later this year.
Prior to his arrest, Murphy had a job as a clubhouse attendant for the Boston Red Sox, which discontinued his employment upon learning of the allegations. He began that role in 2007, following a career as a special education teacher and assistant basketball coach in Massachusetts, as reported in a 2010 interview.
Victims of sexual assault are generally not publicly identified unless they choose to come forward, as in the cases of Meehan and Gilpatrick. Meehan’s lawsuit has been the only civil case to reach trial thus far, with a jury awarding him $38 million in May; however, this verdict is currently under review, as the state seeks to lower the compensation to $475,000.
The youth center, formerly capable of housing over 100 children, now accommodates significantly fewer—typically less than a dozen. It is named after former Governor John H. Sununu. Recently, legislators have sanctioned the closure of the facility, which now only detains those charged or convicted of severe violent offenses, proposing a much smaller institution to be built in a new location.
