A series of recently filed civil complaints allege that more than 150 children were sexually assaulted over the years by staff members at a San Diego County-owned emergency shelter for children.
The litigation concerns the A.B. and Jessie Polinsky Children's Center, a 24-hour facility that provides temporary emergency shelter for children "who must be separated from their families for their own safety, or when parents cannot provide care," according to the county.
Attorneys representing the plaintiffs allege that between 1994 and 2020, their clients were sexually abused by staff members and threatened in order to keep them from reporting the abuse.
The complaints allege the county, which owns and operates the center through its Health and Human Services Agency, failed to have adequate employee background checks and screening processes and failed in its duty to protect children placed in its care.
"There was an institutional failure to adequately staff the facility and monitor employees so that children would not be left alone in circumstances that invited sexual abuse," the complaint read.
The complaint identifies the alleged victims as John and Jane Doe. At the time, they were under 10 years old. Now, they are in their 30s. Some of the alleged offenses include:
- 1998: Plaintiff alleges at 9 years old he was regularly sexually assaulted in his bedroom by his abuser
- 1999: Plaintiff alleges at 7 years old he was groped as a way for his abusers to tell him to calm down
- 1999: Plaintiff alleges at 8 years old she was groped by her abuser that groomed her hair
There are 50 unnamed defendants in the complaint.
Former employees told NBC 7 over the phone that the center was understaffed, employees and volunteers were mistreated and that the children were difficult to control under the circumstances.
Manly, Stewart & Finaldi is the nation’s leading firm representing victims of sexual abuse by government agencies, physicians, Universities, school districts, churches, and sports organizations. They are the lead attorneys representing victims of former Olympic Team doctor Larry Nassar and secured $880 million in settlements. They were the lead attorneys representing victims of former USC gynecologist George Tyndall resulting in an historic $852 million settlement. They represented victims in the $660 million settlement with the Los Angeles Archdioceses in 2007 and more than $700 million in settlement against Catholic entities throughout the United States. They were the lead attorneys in a $140 million settlement with LA Unified School District in the Miramonte cases. The firm has successfully recovered more than 3 billion dollars for its clients through jury verdicts and settlements.
