A Washington, D.C., Alcoholics Anonymous group is being accused of turning into a cult of personality, with members encouraged to cut off ties with outsiders and have sex with other members of the group, Newsweek reported in its May 7 issue.

Former members like May Clancy charge that members of the Midtown AA chapter, one of the city's oldest, deviated sharply from the base philosophy of AA, which avows that there are no program "leaders" and explicitly discourages sex between members. Clancy said the Midtown group seemed to attract older men and younger women, and was initially welcoming.

"When I went there [beginning in November 2005] I didn't really talk to anybody, didn't trust anybody," said Clancy. "And these people would hang out with me even if I didn't say anything, and include me in conversations. I was desperate to be liked at that point."

Soon, however, she began to sour on the program. Members allegedly told her to cut ties with anyone outside the group, deleted the phone book from her cell phone, and pressed her to stop taking medication for her bipolar disorder. Clancy said that the younger members of the group were expected to perform menial labor for older members, and were encouraged to sleep with them, as well.

Clancy said she only realized how dysfunctional the Midtown program was when she left and began attending another AA meeting. She joined a large group of former Midtown members called the Concerned Friends Group that has blasted Midtown for misusing the AA name and has sought to expel the group from the churches where its meetings are held. Concerned Friends members also have complained to police, but an investigation found no evidence of criminal acts.

Criticism of the Midtown group has been somewhat muted, however, by the combination of stigma and AA's tradition of anonymity, which has made some former members reluctant to publicly condemn the group. Likewise, no current members of Midtown agreed to be interviewed by Newsweek on the record, although they defended the program and said critics were either jealous, vengeful, or deluded.

Former members like Lauren Dougherty have been more outspoken. She said she attended Midtown meetings 11 years ago as a teenager and was assigned an AA sponsor rather than choosing one. Dougherty said that members told her to cut off friends from her old life, even those who did not drink, and to get an "AA boyfriend." The final straw was when she was pressured to have sex with other members, she said.

Kristen, 26, another former Midtown member, said her sponsor cursed her out when she announced that she was leaving the group. "You will drink," Kristen recalled the older man telling her. "You will fail. You will die."

"I was so tired of being afraid all the time," she said. "I'd rather die than be in Midtown again."

Local treatment programs have also become wary of Midtown. "They start isolating people, getting them away from any feedback other than their own ... Only go to their meetings, only talk to people in their group," said Jay Eubanks, an administrator with the Kolman Clinics. "If you're seeing a therapist, stop seeing a therapist; if you're in treatment, stop going to treatment; if you're being medicated, stop seeing a doctor."

Concerns about Midtown have caused some therapists to sour on AA in general. "At this point, I am very apprehensive about referring any clients to AA even if they are severe alcoholics," said clinical psychologist Ellen Dye of Rockville, Md. "I think that it is essential that this group be eliminated from AA so that my colleagues and I can feel safe making these referrals again ... We're all saying, 'Go to AA, go to AA,' and we may be sending people into this terrible situation and not realizing it."

Midtown still has defenders in the addiction community, however. "I know people in the group that have long-term sobriety and are doing great," said Beth Kane-Davison, director of the addiction program at Suburban Hospital in Bethesda, Md. For some, she said, "Midtown has been a real godsend. It's taken them in and structured their activities, and filled the void left because they're not using anymore." Still, Davidson has stopped referring patients to Midtown because of concerns about the program.

AA's national headquarters has had nothing to say about Midtown, which comes as no surprise to anyone familiar with the completely decentralized organization, which has no spokesperson and no national leaders. "I think AA is a miraculous organization that is run by nobody and controlled by nobody, and is complete, pure anarchy -- as long as it's tied to the 12 steps -- and I mean that in a good way," said recovering alcoholic and AA member David Hanrahan. "There are meetings all over the world, and anyone can start one, and nobody's in charge of it. That's AA's strength and weakness, right there."