Clark County OKs $2M settlement in foster children abuse

One of seven former foster children who sued Clark County alleging abuse and neglect while in the child welfare system views the $2 million-plus settlement approved Tuesday as a win/lose outcome.

The victim of sexual and physical abuse who asked not to be named said children are set up to fail when they are given bad foster placements. Department of Family Services caseworkers also need to thoroughly investigate any allegations of harm made by foster children.

The system failed the plaintiff in those two aspects.

“I wish they would have made changes as well to better suit the needs of children who are in foster care,” said the plaintiff, who will receive $200,000 over a 20-year period.

The $2.075 million settlement was approved by the Clark County Commission at its Tuesday meeting. About $1.6 million will directly benefit the seven former foster children, while $500,000 will cover attorney fees and costs for plaintiffs’ counsel.

Clark County spent $1.4 million on attorney fees, which covered outside counsel, and other costs in defending the case.

The money for the settlement is coming out of the county’s Liability Fund and Liability Pool Fund. The county has $26 million in those two funds and that money is typically used to pay for lawsuit settlements, according to Erik Pappa, Clark County spokesman. Those funds also pay for insurance, legal and other professional services, administrative costs and risk management operating costs.

The federal civil rights lawsuit aimed at improving Clark County’s child welfare system was filed in 2010. The Oakland, Calif.-based National Center for Youth Law filed the lawsuit, which claims the county’s child welfare agency failed to provide adequate care and safety for foster children.

A federal judge threw out the case, but a federal appeals court reinstated the suit in 2012.

The suit cited concerns with numerous aspects of the county’s child welfare system, including the use of psychotropic medications on children, reported physical and sexual abuse in foster homes, and the adequacy of Child Protective Services investigations, according to the National Center for Youth Law, which called the settlement approval for plaintiffs a “significant step toward completion of their arduous journey.”

Donna Coleman, a longtime child advocate, said she’s glad for the children who will benefit from the settlement, but the purpose of the lawsuit was also to force change in the system, which hasn’t been evident.

“For the past 10 years, we’ve been fighting for change,” she said. “We wanted to reform the system because it was so bad.”

The money will help change the lives of the seven former foster children, she said. Thirteen children were originally part of the lawsuit, which has undergone several changes and no longer names the state as a defendant. Six plaintiffs were dropped.

Bill Grimm, attorney representing the plaintiffs and senior attorney at the National Center for Youth Law, said Tuesday was a good day for the plaintiffs.

Federal Judge Peggy A. Leen will need to sign off on the settlement and the petition for minors’ compromise, which outlines the monetary benefits for each child, he said.

“We are hopeful that the court will act quickly,” Grimm said.

The settlement will provide the necessary resources for the former foster children “to move ahead in their lives,” Grimm said.

Some of the claims in the lawsuit date back 20 years, which covers 10 years when the state of Nevada was responsible for providing foster care, according to a summary of the settlement from Clark County officials.

The county has made policy and procedure changes to address deficiencies in the system.

“We can do better,” Coleman said. “I don’t think we need new policies. I think we need new people to implement policies.”

Contact Yesenia Amaro at yamaro@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0440. Find her on Twitter: @YeseniaAmaro.