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Regional center held liable for disabled
man's death |
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In Morohoshi v. Pacific Home 112 Cal.App.4th 937 (10/22/2003), the California Court of Appeal (Second District) reversed a trial court ruling and held that the Harbor Regional Center has a nondelegable duty to provide care and treatment to developmentally disabled persons.
Bobby Morohishi, a developmentally disabled adult with severe diabetes, was placed in the residential care facility Pacific Home by the Harbor Regional Center in 1995. In 1998, Mr. Morohishi died as a result of a nurse’s negligent failure to check his blood sugar.
The trial court ruled that the Regional Center could not legally be responsible for the negligence of the Pacific Home nurse. The Court of Appeal held that the trial court’s ruling was error and imposed joint and several liability on Pacific Home and Harbor Regional Center because of the Regional Center’s mandatory and nondelegable duty under the Lanterman Act (California Welfare and Institutions Code, Section 4500 et seq.) to provide for the care and treatment of developmentally disabled persons.
“In enacting the Lanterman Act, the state of California accepted responsibility for developmentally disabled persons and established a system by which public and private entities provide services and supports to them. Under the Lanterman Act, the Department of Developmental Disabilities (DDS), a public agency, is responsible for executing laws related to the care, custody, and treatment of individuals with developmental disabilities. DDS contracts with private non-profit community agencies called regional centers to provide the developmentally disabled with ‘access to the services and supports best suited to them throughout their lifetime.’ Harbor is one of these regional centers.”
“Article Two of the Lanterman Act establishes the regional centers' responsibilities to their consumers. Regional centers are required to develop and implement an individualized program plan (IPP) for each consumer which specifies the consumer's needs for services and supports. These services and supports appear in statements of goals and also specific time-limited objectives in the IPP. Under the Act, both goals and objectives ‘shall be stated in terms that allow measurement of progress or monitoring of service delivery.’ The IPP must be reviewed, re-evaluated, and modified no less than every three years by a planning team composed of regional center staff, the consumer, and where appropriate, the consumer's parents, to ascertain whether the planned services have been provided and the objectives have been fulfilled within the time specified in the IPP.” (footnotes omitted)
The California Supreme Court has granted review of Morohoshi v. Pacific Home.
Your child’s special education needs are determined on a case-by-case basis. The Law Offices of Jack H. Anthony can provide you with the legal representation you need when dealing with the school so your child receives the best possible individualized education plan.
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Boy, 13, Raped at Foster Home Wins Suit...
jury awards $1.2 million to the youth, sodomized by a counselor while living in a shelter.
The Los Angeles Times; Los Angeles, Calif.;
Feb 1, 2001 |
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By Scott Gold |
(Copyright, The Times Mirror Company; Los Angeles Times 2001 allRights reserved)
In the first verdict stemming from charges that nine teenagers were sexually assaulted while living in San Bernardino County foster homes, a jury Wednesday awarded $1.2 million to a 13-year-old boy who was sodomized by a counselor.
Jurors will begin weighing additional punitive damages today.
The award, determined in two days of deliberations, was less than half of the $2.5 million requested by the boy's attorneys after the monthlong trial. It included $350,000 for medical and psychological treatment and $850,000 for emotional distress.
The jury ruled that Victor Treatment Centers, a nonprofit group that runs the shelters and is one of the largest operators in California's child welfare system, was largely responsible for the assaults. Jack H. Anthony, the Santa Ana attorney who represents the boy and other alleged victims, will begin a second phase of arguments today in an effort to secure punitive damages.
Two more lawsuits brought by four teenagers who say they were sexually assaulted by counselors are expected to come to trial later this year. Children's advocates have been watching the first case closely, and Anthony said the jury "was willing to send a message."
"The jury saw the big picture, and the big picture is that this wasn't just about this boy; it was about these other kids too," Anthony said. "I think it will make a big difference. If these kids feel that they have a voice, then the group homes might pay more attention to them."
In a prepared statement, Victor Treatment Centers Chief Executive David C. Favor said he was "surprised and disappointed the jury found in favor of . . . holding the agency responsible for the criminal behavior of a former employee." He said the organization "followed all hiring criteria established by the state" in assembling its staff.
"[We] are ever mindful of the fact that caring for seriously emotionally disturbed children in a homelike setting is a huge undertaking and bears with it inherent dangers, and therefore the health and safety of the children we are responsible for is our first and foremost concern. . . . The whole experience has been difficult for everyone."
Later, in a brief telephone conversation, Favor said he has not decided whether to appeal the decision, and he said his organization has been the victim of biased media accounts of the allegations, including those in The Times. According to investigators and attorneys, the boy was living in one of the Victor Treatment Centers shelters, a facility known as Bronson House, in 1999, when he was raped at least three times by counselor Steve Ayala. The counselor has since pleaded guilty to sodomy and received a six-year prison term.
Victor Treatment Centers has argued strenuously that it did not know about the assaults and could not be held responsible for them.
Anthony argued that managers of the home were aware that Ayala had an improper relationship with the boy and did little to stop it.
The jury ruled that Victor Treatment Centers will be responsible for 40% of the $1.2 million, or $480,000. A school run by the organization, North Valley School, will be responsible for 30% of the award, or $360,000. Much of the contact between Ayala and the boy occurred at the school. Ayala will be responsible for the remaining $360,000.
Victor Treatment Centers received $5.5 million in public funds last year to run its facilities.
Anthony acknowledged that Ayala, who is in prison, will not be able to pay his portion of the award.
"As you might imagine, he has no money," Anthony said. "Any money we collect will be from Victor Treatment Centers and North Valley School."
Nine teenagers have now told police, social workers or attorneys that they were raped or molested while living in San Bernardino County group homes. According to Anthony, three of the teenagers say they were molested by fellow residents, and six say they were abused by staff members, all of whom have been fired. Five of the teenagers are plaintiffs in the three lawsuits.
All of the shelters are run by Victor Treatment Centers, and are so-called Level 14 facilities, reserved for the most troubled children in the foster care system.
The California Department of Social Services has moved to shut down one of the homes, known as Chestnut House, where three teenage girls have said they were raped by counselors.
Credit: TIMES STAFF WRITER
Your child’s special education needs are determined on a case-by-case basis. The Law Offices of Jack H. Anthony can provide you with the legal representation you need when dealing with the school so your child receives the best possible individualized education plan.
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