Posted on 06/19/2002 10:24:19 AM PDT by Sweet_Sunflower29
11 youths sue S.C. juvenile prison system
Plaintiffs claim state failed to protect them from physical and sexual abuse
By RICK BRUNDRETT Staff Writer
Eleven youths are suing the state juvenile prison system for nearly $27 million, contending prison officials didn't protect them from sexual or physical abuse by other youths or staff members.
The lawsuits against the S.C. Department of Juvenile Justice, filed separately Tuesday in Circuit Court in Richland County, are another legal blow to the department, which has been battling a federal lawsuit for 12 years. The suits filed Tuesday contend the agency, under federal court supervision since 1995, hasn't complied with a federal judge's order to improve safety.
The 10 teen-age boys and one girl are identified only as "John Doe" or "Elizabeth Roe." They allege they were either sexually or physically assaulted by other teens or staff at department facilities from March 1998 through this April. The facilities named in the suits are all in Columbia. Three are long-term prisons and one is a pre-trial holding facility for juveniles from around the state.
The plaintiffs were 12 to 16 years old when the alleged assaults occurred. In most of the suits, the teens' parents also are named as plaintiffs.
Damages sought in each suit range from $600,000 to $10.2 million, for a total of $26.7 million. State law caps damages against government agencies at $300,000 per incident.
Besides monetary damages, the suits seek class-action status for other juveniles in state custody and an order from a state judge to improve safety. Class-action status would consolidate the suits and allow other plaintiffs to join.
Juvenile Justice Director Gina Wood in a prepared statement Tuesday said she couldn't comment on the suits because she hadn't reviewed them.
"However, we remain confident in the progress the department has made over the past several years, and will continue to demonstrate our commitment to quality services for juveniles and their families," Wood said.
But state Sen. David Thomas, R-Greenville, former chairman of the Senate Corrections and Penology Committee, said Tuesday that neither Wood nor Gov. Jim Hodges, who appointed Wood in 1999, had done enough to fix serious problems in the system.
"The governor needs a reality check," said Thomas, who is running for lieutenant governor. "He truly is in denial over the conditions at the agency."
Thomas said Hodges ignored a letter his committee sent him several years ago warning him about mismanagement at the agency. Wood ignored a separate letter about anonymous reports of sexual assaults on juvenile prisoners by staff, Thomas said.
Hodges spokesman Morton Brilliant on Tuesday accused Thomas of "playing politics with the safety of our kids." He declined to comment on the lawsuits, but added, "We're pleased that DJJ is taking concrete steps to improve conditions. ‘.‘.‘. They're doing a good job."
Gaston Fairey, the lawyer for each of the teens, declined comment on the suits. Fairey, who also is handling the federal suit, has accused the department of covering up the extent of violencein the state's juvenile prisons.
The suits say juvenile-on-juvenile violence each year at department facilities results in more than 1,000 injuries. Department officials have said reports of violence are declining.
The department oversees about 30,000 youths annually; about 1,000 youths ages 12 to 18 were incarcerated in long-term facilities as of February.
One of the boys in the suits alleges that in 1999, when he was 14, he was sexually assaulted 30 times by other boys and that his jaw was broken. A 15-year-old boy contends in his suit he was sexually assaulted 20 times by other boys during 18 days in April. Both boys suffered serious mental health problems afterward, according to their suits.
Four other boys contend in their suits that corrections staff assaulted them; another boy alleges an employee forced him repeatedly to perform sexual acts on the employee.
The only girl suing the department alleges that prison staff "encouraged" her to participate in sexual acts with other girls in December at the Northeast Center, a long-term prison in Columbia that's slated to be closed. Five of the 11 suits cite alleged incidents of sexual and physical abuse at the center.
The suits contend the department allowed assaults to occur even though it knew of similar incidents through earlier lawsuits or settlements. The most recent department figures available show the agency has spent at least $3.9 million in legal fees fighting the ongoing federal suit, filed in 1990.
The suits allege that the department was "grossly negligent" in failing to institute safety measures. Specifically, the suits say the department failed to:
• Establish a "reasonably efficient system" to track sexual misconduct and identify victims and perpetrators;
• Identify and separate violent juveniles from the rest of the juvenile population;
• Educate staff about the "dangers of sexual misconduct";
• Take action when incidents were reported by staff;
• Discipline staff who allowed "aggressive and/or sexual activity" to occur;
• Request additional funding for security in budgets submitted to the governor from 1998 to 2001.
At a May hearing in federal court, Wood assured Judge Joe Anderson that she, Hodges and lawmakers were doing their best to meet safety standards while absorbing about $11 million in budget cuts in the past two years.
Anderson in December said he likely wouldn't soon release the state's juvenile prisons from court oversight, citing a court report that concluded many offenders aren't safe. He said at the May hearing that while the department has made improvements since the federal suit was filed, the agency appeared to be "stagnant and perhaps backsliding" in its efforts to stop assaults.
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