[Watch a Times investigation of abuse at state-run group homes on “The Weekly,” on FX and Hulu.]

When the abuse began, Migdalia could not call for help.

She was 57 but with the mind of a child. She had never spoken and could not form words. She lived in a Bronx group home with two dozen other adults who also were mostly nonverbal and helpless.

Bruises started appearing on her arms and legs. What looked like a shoe print on her belly.

A state investigation later concluded that she and other residents had been beaten by some of the home’s employees, the people who had been entrusted with her care. In Migdalia’s case, the abuse represented an especially deep betrayal.

Migdalia and thousands like her had grown up in the Willowbrook State School, a notorious institution on Staten Island. For decades, the state used the facility as a warehouse for children and adults with developmental disabilities. They were left unattended, naked or in rags. Some were strapped in beds or chairs; others were left to rock endlessly on filthy, locked wards.