Tranquility Bay - Jamaica

Tranquility Bay, located in St. Elizabeth, Jamaica opened in 1997. The program has also been known as the Caribbean Centre for Change.

Jamaica has the highest crime rate of all Caribbean nations and averages 4 murders per day.

According to UNICEF, more than 900 children were sexually assaulted in Jamaica in 2004.

ISAC has received more complaints about Tranquility Bay than any other facility.

Complaints include beatings, brutal physical restraint resulting in broken bones, sexual assault, food deprivation, and excessive use of isolation - known as Observation Placement or OP.

The facility operates according to the guidelines of the World Wide Association of Specialty Programs and Schools (WWASPS), and is marketed by Teen Help, LLC, both located in St. George, Utah.

For additional information about WWASPS, please see our main WWASPS page.

Jay Kay, owner and director of Tranquility Bay, holds no credentials that commonly qualify individuals to work with children.

He is however, the son of WWASPS President Ken Kay.

After dropping out of college, Jay Kay managed a gas station mini-mart in San Diego, CA.

He then worked as a guard at Brightway Adolescent Hospital and eventually became the administrator of the facility.

Children were "evaluated" at Brightway before being sent to other WWASPS/Teen Help affiliated facilities such as Tranquility Bay and Casa by the Sea.

During an investigation of Brightway, Utah State officials found that many of the patient care plans were identical and the staff had failed to report at least one suspected case of abuse.

Jay Kay was declared bankrupt in 1994, just 2 years prior to the purchase of Tranquility Bay.

As with several WWASPS facilities, Tranquility Bay used to be a hotel.

It is guarded and gated, complete with barbed wire and barred windows.

Following a suicide in 2001, bars were added to all balconies.

Most of the 200 Jamaican staff members are reportedly in their late teens or early 20's and are unskilled workers earning a minimum wage.

Students at Tranquility Bay are chaperoned and scrutinized by these staff members 24 hours a day, even while using the toilet.

ISAC has received reports of staff members providing marijuana and cocaine to students in exchange for sexual favors.

During sworn testimony in the August 2004 case of WWASPS vs PURE, WWASPS President Ken Kay stated that in his opinion, sexual activity between staff members and students is "not necessarily" abuse.

When he made the remark, Kay was being questioned about an incident at Tranquility Bay involving a female student and a male staff member.

Of all programs currently under the WWASP/Teen Help referral umbrella, Tranquility Bay carries the reputation of being the "harshest."

Many of the former Tranquility Bay students who have spoken with ISAC were originally placed in other WWASP-affiliated facilities, but were transferred to Tranquility Bay for not complying with the program's rules.

Randall Hinton, a former long-time staff member, has reportedly admitted to using pepper spray on students and spraying it in their eyes from a distance of about 2 feet.

At least one student was reportedly hog-tied when he was sprayed by Hinton.

Hinton also admitted to diapering a teenager with a plastic garbage bag after the child had been pepper-sprayed.

Hinton has stated that he had the approval of Director Jay Kay.

Randall Hinton is currently an administrator of Royal Peak Academy in Colorado. Royal Peak appears to be affiliated with WWASP.

ISAC has received statements alleging that Jay Kay has personally pepper-sprayed, restrained and beaten students.

Tranquility Bay has been described by parents of former students as a "private detention facility," "a holding pen for teens" and "a place for parents to dump their kids."

It appears to ISAC that the statistics support those descriptions.

According to reports, only 20% of all students "graduate" from the program.

Of the remaining 80%, many are withdrawn by their parents, but most withdraw themselves when they turn 18.

Some students are not allowed to leave even when reaching age 18 because parents refuse to make arrangements for the students to return home, and the students themselves are not permitted to do so.