An Illinois case was filed on Monday by 95 people who say they were sexually abused as children in youth detention camps across the state for more than 20 years.
There is a 186-page lawsuit in the Illinois Court of Claims that says state workers "sexually abused Claimants and/or negligently allowed or failed to prevent sexual abuse of Claimants while they were children in the legal and physical custody of the State of Illinois." This happened at Illinois Youth Centers in Chicago, Joliet, and Harrisburg from 1996 to 2017.
95 people who were born on or after July 24, 1983, brought the case. They say they were abused while in care of the state. Some of the claimants chose to hide their names by using only their initials, as 92 others were named.
Two different workers at two youth prison centers sexually abused one of the plaintiffs, Jeffery Christian, when he was a teenager, according to the claim. A news gathering on Tuesday with lawyers and other survivors of abuse gave him a chance to talk about how it affected him.
“I wish I could have used my time in the system to change for the better with the help and discipline of the staff around me... Christ said, "Instead, I was sexually abused and ignored."
"For more than twenty years, I carried the weight of abuse on my shoulders while trying to be tough, hide it, and act like it did not matter." "But I am not going to push it down any longer," he said.
There have been ongoing worries about sexual abuse of children in youth detention centers, which led to the case. According to the Department of Justice's National Survey of Youth in Custody, there are "higher rates of sexual victimization" among young people in these facilities than among adults in bars or jails. According to the poll, the number of young people who say they have been sexually abused has gone down over time, from 12.1% in 2008–09 to 9.5% in 2012 to 7.1% in 2018.
The claim that was filed on Monday says that some cases of sexual abuse of children were done "by systematic and unconstitutional strip searches of juvenile inmates." The searches gave people the chance to abuse children, the lawsuit says.
The claim says, "The State of Illinois has caused and allowed a culture of sexual abuse to grow unchecked in its IYC facilities."
The defendants are the Department of Corrections and/or the Department of Juvenile Justice, which are both parts of the state of Illinois. The case directly charges the accused with sexual abuse and carelessness, among other things. The suit says that each applicant wants a ruling of at least $2 million.
The Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice said in a statement that it knew about the case and that the claims were made during different administrations.
"The Department can not say anything about ongoing litigation, but IDJJ takes the safety of the youth in its care very seriously." The department said, "All claims of wrongdoing by staff are thoroughly and right away looked into in collaboration with the Department of Corrections, the Illinois State Police, and the Department of Children and Family Services."
"IDJJ has put in place rules and policies to make sure that staff and youth are safe and to find any possible cases of abuse or misconduct." IDJJ's rules follow both state and federal safety guidelines, and the company regularly checks its rules and policies. All staff who work in IDJJ sites go through training and police checks, and they also take part in ongoing professional development.
CNN station WLS reported that Gov. JB Pritzker, a Democrat who took office in 2019, said Monday that the accusations were about the previous administration and would not say anything else.
There is a 186-page lawsuit in the Illinois Court of Claims that says state workers "sexually abused Claimants and/or negligently allowed or failed to prevent sexual abuse of Claimants while they were children in the legal and physical custody of the State of Illinois." This happened at Illinois Youth Centers in Chicago, Joliet, and Harrisburg from 1996 to 2017.
95 people who were born on or after July 24, 1983, brought the case. They say they were abused while in care of the state. Some of the claimants chose to hide their names by using only their initials, as 92 others were named.
Two different workers at two youth prison centers sexually abused one of the plaintiffs, Jeffery Christian, when he was a teenager, according to the claim. A news gathering on Tuesday with lawyers and other survivors of abuse gave him a chance to talk about how it affected him.
“I wish I could have used my time in the system to change for the better with the help and discipline of the staff around me... Christ said, "Instead, I was sexually abused and ignored."
"For more than twenty years, I carried the weight of abuse on my shoulders while trying to be tough, hide it, and act like it did not matter." "But I am not going to push it down any longer," he said.
There have been ongoing worries about sexual abuse of children in youth detention centers, which led to the case. According to the Department of Justice's National Survey of Youth in Custody, there are "higher rates of sexual victimization" among young people in these facilities than among adults in bars or jails. According to the poll, the number of young people who say they have been sexually abused has gone down over time, from 12.1% in 2008–09 to 9.5% in 2012 to 7.1% in 2018.
The claim that was filed on Monday says that some cases of sexual abuse of children were done "by systematic and unconstitutional strip searches of juvenile inmates." The searches gave people the chance to abuse children, the lawsuit says.
The claim says, "The State of Illinois has caused and allowed a culture of sexual abuse to grow unchecked in its IYC facilities."
The defendants are the Department of Corrections and/or the Department of Juvenile Justice, which are both parts of the state of Illinois. The case directly charges the accused with sexual abuse and carelessness, among other things. The suit says that each applicant wants a ruling of at least $2 million.
The Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice said in a statement that it knew about the case and that the claims were made during different administrations.
"The Department can not say anything about ongoing litigation, but IDJJ takes the safety of the youth in its care very seriously." The department said, "All claims of wrongdoing by staff are thoroughly and right away looked into in collaboration with the Department of Corrections, the Illinois State Police, and the Department of Children and Family Services."
"IDJJ has put in place rules and policies to make sure that staff and youth are safe and to find any possible cases of abuse or misconduct." IDJJ's rules follow both state and federal safety guidelines, and the company regularly checks its rules and policies. All staff who work in IDJJ sites go through training and police checks, and they also take part in ongoing professional development.
CNN station WLS reported that Gov. JB Pritzker, a Democrat who took office in 2019, said Monday that the accusations were about the previous administration and would not say anything else.
