CHICAGO (AP) — Child sexual abuse at Illinois juvenile detention centers was pervasive and systemic for decades, according to disturbing accounts in a lawsuit filed Monday by 95 men and women housed at the youth centers as children. The lawsuit details alleged incidents of abuse from 1996 to 2017, including gang rape, forced oral sex, beatings and groping of children by corrections officers, sergeants, nurses, therapists, a chaplain and others at nine youth centers. Many plaintiffs said they were threatened or rewarded to keep quiet. “The State of Illinois has allowed a culture of abuse at Illinois Youth Centers to flourish unabated,” the 186-page complaint said. The lawsuit, filed in the Illinois Court of Claims, follows similar harrowing allegations of child sex abuse at juvenile detention centers in Maryland, New Jersey, New Hampshire, California and New York City. Some cases have gone to trial or resulted in settlements; arrests have been infrequent. |
Attendance action plan includes daily data, traffic light systemChiefs crush Moana 68Friends of Kiwi who died in Australia raising funds to bring body homeUS to build temporary port to deliver Gaza aidUS, UK accuse China over spy campaign that may have hit millionsSmall earthquake felt in Wellington regionCentral Auckland jewellers robbed in ram raidThe 96th Annual Academy AwardsOutage hits Apple services, including App Store and Apple TV+Christopher Luxon defends use of taxpayer funds for Auckland