LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously Tuesday to appeal a $3.1 million judgment awarded to a woman who said her 15-month-old baby was seized by county social workers against her rights.
In November, a jury found that the county’s actions amounted to unwarranted seizure of the child with malice, but denied punitive damages to Rafaelina Duval. The $3.1 million is compensatory damages and includes $165,000 awarded because Duval was judged to be the victim of discrimination.
Her son, Ryan, was taken on Nov. 3, 2009, after social workers Kimberly Rogers and Susan Pender accused Duval of general neglect and intentionally starving the boy, according to a statement issued by Duval’s attorney, Shawn McMillan, following the verdict.
McMillan said they also accused Duval of suffering from Munchausen syndrome by proxy, a mental illness that causes caregivers to lie about or exaggerate childhood illnesses to garner sympathy for themselves.
Duval alleged that the social workers made the decision to take her son away after her father called them “white trash” and accused them of racism.
“The law is very clear and the social workers get training on this, you cannot seize a child from its parents unless there’s an emergency,” McMillan said.
Defense attorneys said the social workers saved Ryan’s life and that his father — who was granted custody — is taking good care of him.
Duval has visitation privileges but said she is able to see her son for only a half-hour every two weeks.
“No amount of money can ever replace what they took from me,” Duval said in the November statement.
Defense attorney Tomas Guterres had urged jurors against awarding punitive damages, telling the panel that it could result in social workers being afraid to intervene in time-critical cases of severe abuse without a warrant.
Because the matter was considered in a closed-door session, no board documents were provided to the public and the board offered no comment beyond noting the 5-0 vote to appeal.
The Department of Children and Family Services does not comment on individual cases, citing confidentiality of records.
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Johnny Johnson says
These guys are idiots. Orange County took the same approach in Fogarty-Hardwick v. County of Orange and ended up turning a $4.9 million verdict into a $9.6 million judgment after all the appeals had run.
LA County taxpayers should be pissed at their Board of Supervisors.
Misquote AKA PoliticalMalfunction says
Pissed about this and forty-thousand other foolish things. Like using citizens’ tax money to provide legal assistance for illegals. That rotten clown show thinks the constitution is a suicide pact. But then so do most municipal, county and state governments in the sovereign country of Mexifornia. Keeping my passport in hand.
I know, racist, racist, yada, yada……………….Just sad to lose my wonderful country. Yeah, yeah, I love you too.
Tim Scott says
You keep talking about “losing your country.” Where did you last see it? Last time I looked my country hadn’t moved in decades and was right where it was supposed to be.
Misquote AKA PoliticalPollution says
“Where did you last see it?”. LMAO. You’re my hero. I love arguing with your reason and humor.
Anyway, I just poorly expressed my nationalistic “pointy-hood” nostalgia for our country when I, and dirt, were young. Culture. Courtesy. Common sense and common cause. A brotherhood of nation united against external threats. Citizenship was cherished and earned. Our educational system was envied. Immigrants cared about their new country. Nobody defecated on our tennis courts.
That’s the country I haven’t seen in a while.
There was plenty ugly too, but there was no 24-hour news cycle and I miss that more innocent time. When serious female journalists didn’t dress like hookers (but weather ladies are OK). When we controlled who came into our country. When MSNBC masqueraded as real journalism (except Lockup Extended Stay OK).
Just ranting
Best. Soon
I keep changing my screen name cause I’m schizophrenic.
Just Wondering says
I believe the board is doing something right for a change. I, and no one else, wants to ever see another Gabriel Fernandez tragedy. It is better for the social workers to be more cautious than not.