In a shocking revelation, over 100 individuals have come forward as plaintiffs in lawsuits filed against San Diego County, alleging child sex abuse crimes within a 24-hour emergency shelter for children.
The Polinsky Children's Center, a county-owned facility designed to provide a safe haven for minors separated from their families, is now at the center of these allegations.
According to The Post Millennial, the civil complaints accuse San Diego County of failing to fulfill its duty to safeguard the vulnerable children under its care. The lawsuits cite a "total lack of supervision" and "inadequate background checks and screenings" for employees as significant contributors to the alleged abuse. The plaintiffs' legal representation states, "Children were left in isolated situations where individuals employed by the center could abuse and harm them with impunity." The lawsuit further alleges that staff members intimidated the children into silence, threatening that they would never be allowed to leave if they reported the abuse.
The alleged victims, who suffered abuse from the early 1990s to 2023, range in age from 2 to 17. The complaints detail horrific accounts of both male and female employees at the center repeatedly sexually assaulting the children, including acts of groping, molestation, and forced sexual acts. Several of the accusers, now in their 40s, are "still suffering from the unimaginable trauma they experienced at Polinsky," according to the attorneys representing the plaintiffs.
One particularly disturbing account alleges that a female staff member repeatedly molested a 9-year-old during gym practice. This same employee, who was also responsible for putting the children to bed, allegedly subjected the child to repeated sexual abuse while alone in his bedroom. Another complaint details the experience of a nine-year-old victim who was allegedly forced to endure repeated sexual abuse from a male staff member. The complaint alleges that the staff member would enter the child's bedroom at night, coerce him into performing sex acts, and then intimidate him with violent threats if he disclosed the incident to anyone.
The lawsuits charge San Diego County with negligence and intentional infliction of emotional distress. Adam Slater, Founding and Managing Partner of Slater Slater Schulman LLP, expressed his outrage, stating, "It is utterly unacceptable that such heinous acts were allowed to persist in a place meant to provide safety and care. These were children seeking refuge during a highly disruptive moment in their young lives. Rather than providing them a place to be loved and nurtured, the County was sending child after child into their own personal hell."
The Polinsky Children's Center, located in Kearny Mesa, is operated by the county's Health and Human Services. The facility, equipped with a nursery and six residential cottages, can accommodate approximately 200 children. The center admits over 100 children, ranging from infants to age 17, on a monthly basis for a maximum 10-day stay. The allegations against the center raise serious questions about the safety and welfare of the children placed in its care, casting a dark shadow over the institution meant to serve as a refuge for the most vulnerable.
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