When I was young, I was abused in a foster home. What can I do now to obtain some justice?
I am sorry for whatever abuse you endured.
If you want justice for abuse, the first thing I would advise you to do is report what happened to the police. Your question does not state your age nor the nature or time of the abuse. I would advise you to report crimes to the police. Depending on what happened and when it happened, the District Attorney may or may not be able to bring charges against the perpetrator.
State Claim
You may also have civil claims as a foster child. Potentially you can sue the perpetrator and the authority that investigated the perpetrator before and after you were placed in their custody. The Child Victims Act extended the statute of limitations for victims to make claims against perpetrators. Claims against the perpetrator directly may have no value since the perpetrator may already be in jail and unable to pay any judgment.
Federal Claim
As a foster child you may have several claims against the Department of Social Services and Child Protective Services. One claim could be a Federal Civil Rights claim under 42 USC 1983. Federal Civil Rights claims require that the municipal entity showed “deliberate indifference” to the victim’s welfare and safety. That means that the municipal employee disregarded a known or obvious consequence of his action or inaction. This can be inferred from a “pattern of omissions revealing deliberate inattention to specific duties imposed for the purpose of safeguarding plaintiff’s from abuse.”
Cases like these can drag on for a long time. But the Federal claim will give the plaintiff the best chance to obtain crucial discovery, necessary to prove a claim. Statute protects most of the records of these agencies from discovery. But a viable claim against the municipal entity would give the Court the leverage to order documents to be turned over during discovery.
There are many other considerations and claims. Needless to say, an extended consultation with an attorney would be your best course of action.
By James Santner, Esq.
If you have questions about a similar situation, feel free to contact us. Consultations are free and there is no fee unless we win.