Two former residents of a juvenile treatment center, located in Cresson until it was shuttered in 2015, are suing the Massachusetts-based corporation that operated the facility, contending they were victims of rampant sexual abuse perpetrated by the agency’s staff.

The lawsuit, filed by attorney Jason E. Luckasevic of Pittsburgh, was on behalf of individuals who are now adults but who were in the facility that housed up to 52 at-risk juveniles from 2008-15.

The state of Pennsylvania contracted with the Justice Resource Institute of Needham Heights, Mass., to operate the facility located at 251 Correction Road, Cresson, not far from the former Cresson State Correctional Institution, which itself was closed after an investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice.

DOJ concluded that the state prison had violated the rights of inmates with serious mental health issues and disabilities by holding them in isolation “for months, even years, at a time.”

The Cresson SCI was closed under the administration of former Gov. Tom Corbett.

That investigation by the DOJ was completed in 2013.

Two years later, the Pennsylvania Department of Health and Human Services ended its contact with the Juvenile Resource Institute, thereby closing the Cresson center.

The present lawsuit was initially filed in the Allegheny Court of Common Pleas.

It lists two plaintiffs who are asking money damages of in excess of $50,000 on each of six counts that charge JRI with negligence in its operation of the center, negligence in hiring staff and negligence in its supervision of the staff.

The plaintiffs are not named but are referred to by their initials.

The lawsuit indicated that the use of initials is to protect the identities of the victims.

The names of the alleged perpetrators are also not listed.

One of the victims charges that he was repeatedly sexually assaulted by a supervisor at the facility.

The other victim stated that a female on the staff abused him on a daily basis.

She would expose herself to him, force him to touch her and would perform sexual acts on him.

These incidents would occur at various locations, including a cleaning closet and his own room.

A second female staff member also sexually abused the victim, it is charged.

“Defendants knew, or should have known” that the children in the Cresson facility were victims of sexual assault, the lawsuit poses.

But it also speculated why the victims themselves hesitated to report what was occurring.

One victim, for instance, noted he was physically threatened if he revealed the abuse.

Also, “perpetrators used their positions of authority over plaintiffs, as agents of the defendants (JRI), to calculatedly manipulate and groom plaintiffs during plaintiffs’ time as juvenile detainees at Cresson,” it was alleged.

The petition filed by the plaintiffs went on to report the alleged abuse at the Cresson facility caused the victims to suffer long-term effects that have included emotional distress, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder.

“Children who are sexually abused in juvenile detention facilities like Cresson rarely file grievances against staff due to fear of retaliation or knowing they will not be believed,” the lawsuit continued.

Also, it noted, staff who learn about incidents tend to “look the other way and allow it to continue.”

The lawsuit concluded, “according to a 2010 report by the U.S. Department of Justice, 13 percent of youth in juvenile facilities are sexually abused, most often by the staff of the facility.”

That same report stated: “The Cresson Secure Treatment Unit had some of the highest rates of sexual victimization reported by youth inmates at three times the national average.”

The case has been transferred from Allegheny County to the Federal Court at the request of the Justice Resource Center.

The defendant (JRI) is represented by attorney Nancy R. Winschel of the Pittsburgh law firm of Dickie, McCamey & Chilcote.

It was originally assigned to Judge Kim R. Gibson, who presides in Johnstown, but on Thursday, the case was reassigned to the chief judge of the Western District, Mark R. Hornak.

The Justice Resource Institute has agreed to file its answer to the allegations by Dec. 13.

Neither attorney could be reached for comment on Friday.

JRI is a nonprofit organization that provides services to high-risk adults and juveniles, according to its website.