Foster Care Sexual Abuse Attorneys

Common Forms of Sexual Abuse in Foster Care

Foster care systems have legal obligations to reasonably handle sexual abuse allegations. Unfortunately, foster programs often fail to protect placed children from sexual abuse by foster parents and other predators or abusers.

The common forms of sexual abuse in foster care include:

• Inappropriate Touching or Fondling: This involves any non-consensual, intentional contact with a child's body for sexual purposes. It can include touching of private parts, either over or under clothing, and forcing the child to touch the perpetrator.
• Exposure to Sexual Content: This includes showing children pornography or involving them in the creation of sexual images or videos. Exposing children to sexually explicit material is a form of sexual abuse that can have long-lasting psychological effects.
• Sexual Exploitation: Children may be coerced or manipulated into performing sexual acts in exchange for money, goods, or other benefits. This can also involve trafficking, where children are moved from one place to another for the purpose of sexual exploitation.
• Verbal Sexual Harassment: This involves making sexual comments, jokes, or propositions to a child. It can also include threats or pressure to engage in sexual activities, creating a hostile and intimidating environment.
• Rape or Attempted Rape: This is the most severe form of sexual abuse, involving forced or coerced sexual intercourse or attempted intercourse. It includes any form of penetration, regardless of how slight, without the child's consent.
• Forcing a Child to Engage in Sexual Activities with Others: Sometimes, children may be forced to engage in sexual activities with other children or adults. This can be part of a broader pattern of exploitation and abuse within or outside the foster care environment.
• Involvement in Prostitution or Sex Trafficking: Some children in foster care may be coerced into prostitution or sex trafficking. This form of abuse often involves organized criminal activities and severe manipulation and control over the victims.

Whether abuse is committed by a member of a child’s foster family, a program worker, or some other party, there may be options for survivors to bring civil lawsuits against not only wrongdoers, but also the program or system which failed to protect them.

Examples of claims related to foster care sexual abuse:

The consequences of this abuse can be long-lasting and devastating for the child. The foster care system must take action to prevent these heinous acts from occurring and provide adequate support and care for those who have already experienced them.