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WEST PALM BEACH - A severely disabled teenager and his mother sued the state Department of Children and Families, claiming he suffered physical and sexual abuse after the agency placed him in a hotel with at-risk youth.
The teenager, identified only as "A.D.," was 15 at the time. He suffers from spastic cerebral palsy and attention deficit disorder and has a shunt in his chest.
According to a lawsuit filed Thursday in Circuit Court, the agency took custody of the boy and his brother in March 2002 on suspicion they were being abused or neglected. DCF placed the boys in a hotel room with an older teenager. The brother ran away after five days, and the department continued to place other foster teens in the room.
The suit claims one or more of the roommates repeatedly abused A.D.
At the time, the department was having trouble finding appropriate foster homes for hard-to-place children, said David May, DCF district administrator in Palm Beach County. May said the state used hotels as a last resort.
According to the suit, the brothers were not adequately supervised by workers from Maxim Healthcare Services, who were paid by DCF to watch the children, officials said.
DCF ended its contract with Maxim after six girls under state care were caught partying with men at another hotel.