Lawsuit Information Center
If children are placed in foster care and forced to live in a foster home by the state, and they are sexually abused while in foster care, they can sue the state for negligently failing to protect them. Foster care sex abuse lawsuits are now being filed across the country. On this page, our national sex abuse lawyers will look at the basics of foster care sexual abuse lawsuits and their potential settlement payout value.
About Foster Care
In the U.S., states have the authority to remove children from their homes and placed them in foster care where they live in a foster home. The state can place children in foster care for a variety of reasons. If a child’s parents die, go to jail, become disabled, or are otherwise unable to care for their children, the state can step in and remove them to foster care.
The state can also place children in foster care if it is determined that they are not safe in their home because their parents (or guardians) are physically or sexually abusing the children. Foster care can also be an option if the state determines that the children are being severely neglected, such as not being properly fed.
Whatever the reason, when the state exercises its authority to remove children from the custody of their parents or guardians and put them in foster care, the state essentially assumes responsibility for ensuring that the children are safe and protected in their foster home.
Every state government has an agency that is responsible for child welfare and placing children in foster care. These agencies have a duty to ensure the safety of children in foster care. For starters, the agency is supposed to thoroughly vet or screen potential foster care parents (and anyone living in their household). The obvious reason for this is to make sure foster parents or families do not have anyone that is physically or sexually abusive.
The state’s duty to protect foster children does not end after foster families are screened. The state child welfare agency has an obligation to diligently monitor and supervise children in foster care and to look for potential signs of abuse. These are just some of the basic duties state child welfare agencies have.
Sexual Abuse of Children in Foster Care
The sad reality in the U.S. is that children who are placed in foster care are at a much higher risk of being victims of sexual abuse. Studies have found that placing children in foster homes makes them 4 times more likely to be victims of sexual abuse. When children are placed in “group home” foster care facilities (as opposed to traditional family setting foster care) the risk of sexual abuse is even higher.
There are several reasons for these high rates of sexual abuse of children in foster care. For starters, sexual predators often inject themselves into the foster care system, as foster parents or staff at group homes, in order to gain access to victims. Moreover, children in foster care are uniquely vulnerable to sexual abuse.
Another big part of the problem, however, is the total failure and neglect of state child welfare agencies. State child welfare agencies across the country have been found to be grossly negligent when it comes to ensuring the safety of children in foster care. They do a poor job of screening for an identifying sexual predators in the foster system. More significantly, state agencies routinely ignore or fail investigate complaints or signs of abuse.
Victims of Foster Care Sex Abuse Can File Lawsuits and Get Compensation
Anyone who has been the victim of sexual abuse in a foster care setting can file a foster care sex abuse lawsuit and get financial compensation. Victims of foster care sex abuse can sue the state child welfare agency, or third parties such as private foster care agencies who contract with the state, or other companies involved in the foster care system.
Both the state and any private agencies have a legal duty to take reasonable steps to protect children in foster care from sexual abuse. In order to succeed in a foster care sex abuse lawsuit, victims only need to show that the foster care agencies were negligent.
Negligence on the part of the foster care or state welfare agency can come in a variety of forms. The most common negligence claims in foster care sex abuse lawsuits are that the agency ignored or failed to investigate prior complaints about abuse by one of the foster parents (or another person in the foster home).
For example, lets say John is a foster parent. The state child welfare agency has received a number of reports about John that raise red flags and indicate that he may be a sexual predator. The agency does basically nothing to investigate and continues placing foster kids in John’s care. If John sexually abuses one of those foster kids, they could sue the child welfare agency for negligence in a sex abuse lawsuit.
Foster Care Sex Abuse Settlements and Verdicts
Victims in successful foster care sex abuse lawsuits can get significant financial compensation. Below are summaries of settlements and verdicts in a number of recent foster care sex abuse cases. These cases give you an idea of the type of settlement payouts victims can potentially get in foster care sex abuse cases.
$7,000,000 Settlement (Massachusetts 2023): A group of 4 former foster children alleged that the were sexually abused by a their foster parents in the late 1990s and early 2000s. They brought a sex abuse negligence lawsuit against the Massachusetts child welfare agency claiming that the agency repeatedly ignored warning signs and complaints about the foster parents sexually abusing children. The state paid $7 million to settle the claims.
$485,000,000 Verdict (New Mexico 2023): In this case, an 8-year-old girl was placed in a foster care home with a foster parent who had previously been accused of sexual assault. The foster parent repeatedly sexually assaulted the girl while she was at the foster home and she later sued the private contractor (Acadia Healthcare) that operated the foster system for the state. A jury found that the foster care agency was negligent and awarded a staggering $485 million.
$7,800,000 Settlement (California 2022): The lawsuit alleged that the San Bernadino County foster care system failed to protect a child from sexual and physical abuse by placing his older brother in the same foster home despite being aware of his prior abusive behavior. The lawsuit also alleged that social workers from county Child and Family Services did not properly supervise the case and failed to adequately monitor the child’s condition.
$3,500,000 Settlement (Washington 2020): In this case, the female plaintiff claimed she was placed in a foster home despite reports of suspected child sexual abuse, and then her foster father sex trafficked her in Washington apple orchards over a 13 year period from age 3 to age 16. The state child services department was allegedly negligent for putting her in the home and then ignoring repeated reports of abuse.
$2,900,000 Settlement (Florida 2019): The Florida Department of Children and Families was sued by 3 former foster care children who claimed that they were sexually abused at a foster home in Nassau County. The abuse was perpetrated by the 2 older children of the foster parents. The older children were apparently known to be sexually aggressive, but the agency continued placing foster kids in the home anyways.
Contact Us About Foster Case Sex Abuse Lawsuits
Our national sexual abuse attorneys represent victims across the country. If you have a foster care sex abuse case, contact us at 800-553-8082 or contact us online.