CHELTENHAM YOUTH DETENTION CENTER SEXUAL ABUSE LAWSUITS

Fighting for Survivors of Staff-on-Inmate Abuse

If you were sexually abused while housed at the Cheltenham Youth Detention Center in Cheltenham, Maryland, you may have grounds to pursue legal action and a financial recovery of your damages.

Cheltenham Youth Detention Center (formerly known as the Cheltenham Youth Facility) has been embroiled in years of scrutiny over claims that numerous male and female juveniles were sexually abused by staff members while in custody.

Now, thanks to a recently passed Maryland law that creates new opportunities for child sex abuse survivors to seek justice, Cheltenham is facing renewed allegations over supervisory failures that enabled a culture of misconduct, cover-ups, and rampant abuse that persisted for decades.

Levy Konigsberg is a top-rated trial practice with a legacy of litigating sexual abuse lawsuits for survivors across Maryland and the nation. We’re representing a growing number of men and women who were sexually abused while incarcerated at Cheltenham Youth Facility and other Maryland juvenile detention centers, and are available to help survivors explore their rights under Maryland’s Child Victims Act.

History of Abuse at Cheltenham Youth Detention Center

Cheltenham Youth Detention Center is a juvenile detention facility located in Cheltenham, Maryland. As a secure detention facility, Cheltenham houses male and female youth who are awaiting court hearings or placement in a treatment facility. It primarily serves youth from Prince George’s, Anne Arundel, Calvert, Montgomery, Charles, and St. Mary’s Counties.

In operation since 1870, Cheltenham has been previously known as the Cheltenham School for Boys and the Boys’ Village of Maryland. It was known as the Cheltenham Youth Facility from 1992 until 2016, when the new facility opened as Cheltenham Youth Detention Center.

Throughout its history, Cheltenham’s legacy of abuse and misconduct has been the subject of sweeping investigations, civil lawsuits, and criminal cases.

These legal and investigative matters have spanned decades and have revealed evidence of systemic abuse and misconduct within the facility, including numerous instances and reports of sexual abuse.In addition to rampant physical, mental, and sexual abuse, these cases also detail the failures of Cheltenham officials and the entities responsible for its operation in creating a culture of secrecy and cover-ups that allowed abuse to persist for years. Some examples include:

• In April 2004, an investigation from the DOJ’s Civil Rights division revealed major deficiencies in harm protection measures at Cheltenham Youth Facility, as well as a “deeply disturbing degree” of physical abuse by staff, violence among youth, excessive use of disciplinary isolation, and numerous instances of sexual misconduct and inappropriate staff-youth relationships. The report also noted that despite previous cases of staff-on-inmate sexual abuse, Cheltenham had failed to institute adequate measures to prevent incidents.
• In April 2002, Carolyn Diane Cooley was suspended by the U.S. DOJ and charged with multiple sex crimes after authorities discovered that she had engaged in a weeks-long relationship with a teen housed at Cheltenham. Cooley had worked as a guard at the Cheltenham facility.
• In February 2001, a coalition of more than a dozen advocacy groups announced a campaign to close Cheltenham Youth Facility over systemic violence and sexual abuse within the facility. The campaign’s efforts were prompted by longstanding criticism of Cheltenham, including the efforts of a prominent national advocacy group that called Cheltenham one of the worst juvenile facilities in the country in 1995.
• In December 1999, state juvenile justice officials acknowledged that they had fired seven employees for assaulting youth inmates at Cheltenham in the past year. The firings, as well as reports of more than 200 suicide-related incidents and dozens of sexual assaults by guards, were reported after the creation of task force to monitor conditions in the facility.
• In July 1999, Cheltenham Superintendent Carlton Richardson was demoted and transferred to another facility after it was discovered that a counselor under his supervision impregnated a teen housed at the facility.
• In October 1991, Jean Castle was indicted on charges that he sexually abused 16 boys while employed as a nurse at the facility. Castle worked at the facility for under two weeks, between May and June 1991, before he was arrested and initially charged with molesting three youth.
• In February 1991, Terry Kevin Ward was found guilty of child sex abuse after he sexually assaulted a youth inmate at Cheltenham (then called the Boys Village of Maryland) while he was a counselor at the facility. Ward was later charged with other sex crimes in 1993 after he molested a teen while coaching baseball with the Columbia Youth Baseball Association.

Do I Have a Case?

You may have grounds to file a civil legal action if:

• You were sexually abused by a guard, counselor, nurse, or other youth residential treatment or juvenile detention center staff member.
• The abuse occurred at any youth residential treatment or juvenile detention facility.

Levy Konigsberg represents survivors in civil lawsuits that aim to hold youth residential treatment facilities,  juvenile detention centers, private healthcare companies, and other facility operators accountable for their failures to stop abusive staff members and protect young residents.

As civil claims, these cases are separate from any criminal proceedings that may arise from abuse and focus instead on holding institutions liable for damages. This means you may still have a claim even if:

• Your abuser is no longer alive.
• Your abuser was never charged with or convicted of a crime.

Recoverable Damages in Sexual Abuse Claims

In addition to providing accountability and a sense of justice, civil sex abuse lawsuits allow survivors to recover financial compensation for their damages, which may include:

• Past medical and mental health expenses
• Future mental health expenses, including therapy, medications, etc.
• Pain and suffering
• Emotional anguish and psychological harm
• Lost income
• Other economic and non-economic damages

Maryland Sexual Abuse Attorneys

Maryland has been a frontrunner in passing legislation that greatly expands the rights of sexual abuse survivors – and especially survivors of child sexual abuse.

Thanks to the Child Victims Act, which was signed into law in April 2023 by Governor Wes Moore, survivors who were sexually abused as minors in Maryland now have unprecedented opportunities to pursue justice against their abusers and any institutions that failed to protect them.

Here are some key details about Child Victims Act of 2023:

• The CVA eliminates the statute of limitations for civil lawsuits based on child sexual abuse, which means that there is no deadline by which survivors must initiate legal action.
• The CVA creates an unlimited lookback period that allows child sexual abuse survivors to file lawsuits over abuse that occurred at any time in the past, even if such claims were barred by the previous statute of limitations.

The Child Victims Act went into effect on October 1, 2023, and prison and juvenile detention systems with long histories of child sexual abuse are seeing a growing number claims brought by survivors abused years and decades ago.

While Maryland has significantly revised state laws regarding the statute of limitations for civil suits brought by child sexual abuse laws, it has not done so for claims brought by adult survivors.

Under Maryland state law, if the victim was an adult at the time of the abuse, the statute of limitations for filing a civil lawsuit is 3 years from the date of the abuse – no matter if the claim if brought against the alleged abuse or an institution.

Given the 3-year statute of limitations for adult sexual abuse lawsuits, it is advised that survivors with potential claims seek legal counsel as soon as possible.

Levy Konigsberg is actively investigating allegations of sexual abuse at Maryland juvenile detention centers.

We are committed to protecting the most vulnerable members of our society and seeking justice for survivors of sexual abuse in juvenile detention centers and youth residential treatment facilities. Our experienced team is dedicated to providing legal representation and support to survivors, and we are actively investigating allegations of abuse. We are working tirelessly to ensure that survivors have access to justice and that future generations of young people are safe from harm within these institutions.