West Palm Beach

Governor Scott Signs $5 Million Claims Bill for Child Sexually Abused by Foster Boy Living in the Home C.M.H. v. Florida Department of Children & Families, Palm Beach

On Friday, March 23, 2018, Governor Rick Scott signed CS/HB 6509, a claims bill that directs the Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF) to pay more than a $5 million judgment awarded by a Florida jury to C.M.H., a victim of sexual abuse by a child in foster care. This marks the largest known recovery in Florida at the time for one child who was emotionally and sexually abused against a governmental defendant, DCF. Read more here

Law Firm for Eight Abused Former Foster Care Children Settles With NYC, Child Care Agencies for $26 Million

Eight developmentally disabled foster care children who were placed in what one judge called a “house of horrors” foster home have settled with New York state adoption and child welfare agencies and their state-contracted providers for $17.5 million, bringing the total paid by the defendants to more than $26 million. In one of the most significant settlements by a foster care law firm in New York, the settlement provides a safety net for the former foster children, now adults, who suffered years of abuse. The settlement is believed to be the largest ever in New York, and a judge approved the settlement. The 2014 New York settlement follows a $9.7 million settlement with the City of New York for the same case, for a total paid by the defendants to more than $26 million.

“This was a horrifying case of failed oversight by state agencies and their providers contracted to protect the needs of society’s most vulnerable,” said Howard Talenfeld. “Although the settlement cannot replace the family these kids, who now are adults, should have had, the money from the settlement will ensure the plaintiffs have a safety net protecting them for the rest of their lives. It’s not going to solve all their problems, but it will help them with the years ahead.” Read more below:

• New York Times: City Settles With Disabled People Fraudulently Adopted in ’90s and Abused
• New York Daily News: EXCLUSIVE: Agency responsible for placing foster children with accused perv who sent kid to foster parent that tortured them

Settlement in Civil Rights Suit.

This civil rights lawsuit involved a claim by a foster child pursuant to 42 USC § 1983 in federal court in Palm Beach County and for negligence against various Florida Department of Children & Families employees and a private mental health crisis stabilization unit for violating the due process rights of a foster child who was confined for almost one year in a crisis stabilization unit because there were no appropriate placements for discharge. The Plaintiff settled this lawsuit against the private agency for an undisclosed amount and the DCF and its employees for $1.6 million.

Foster Child’s History of Behavior Misrepresented.

Two Palm Beach County, FL parents adopted a foster child who was represented on the adoption registry to be a great student and athlete, but the child welfare agencies omitted advising them that he was violent, had extraordinary mental health diagnoses and a criminal background. This boy destroyed more than $100,000 of the parents’ property. This case settled for an undisclosed amount that was placed in a special needs trust for the child’s life.

Lawsuit for Failure To Protect Foster Child From Sexual Abuse and Child-On-Child Sexual Abuse.

Florida child abuse attorneys filed suit in Palm Beach County, FL on behalf of a foster child against private child welfare providers and an emergency shelter for failure to protect the child from sexual abuse and child-on-child sexual abuse. The case resolved for an undisclosed amount. One defendant did not have the minimum insurance required by statute governing privatization of foster care and related services. Justice for Kids attorneys then filed suit against that agency’s insurance broker for failure to procure the statutorily required insurance coverage. That case also resolved for an undisclosed amount.

Lawsuit for Failure To Protect Child From Sexual Assault By Male Shelter Employee.

Florida child abuse attorneys resolved a case on behalf of a 16-year-old girl against a private agency that owned and operated an emergency shelter in Palm Beach County, FL for failure to protect the child from sexual assault by a male shelter employee. The case resolved pre-suit for an undisclosed amount. Read more below

• Sun-Sentinel: Youth care worker accused of sexual battery on teen
• Palm Beach Post: Youth care worker rapes teen on way to shelter