LA approves $4bn to settle 'horrific' child abuse claims

Los Angeles County has confirmed it will pay a record $4bn (£3.4bn) to settle nearly 7,000 claims of "horrific" child sexual abuse related to their juvenile facilities and foster care homes over a period of decades.

Survivors say they were abused and mistreated by staff in institutions meant to protect them - with many of the claims linked to MacLaren Children's Center, a shelter that permanently closed in 2003.

"This was the fox guarding the hen house – they were raping boys and raping girls," Todd Becker, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, told the BBC.

The allegations stretch back to 1959, with most incidents taking place in the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s.

The unprecedented $4bn settlement was approved on Tuesday by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors.

But some victims have not accepted the terms of the settlement, and say they will go ahead with legal cases. The county said two cases had been referred to the district attorney for possible prosecution.

The case arose from a 2020 California state law that gave victims of childhood sexual abuse a new window to file civil claims against alleged predators and the agencies that employed them.

"The things they endured are the most horrific things you can imagine," said Mr Becker.

The New York Times has reported that staff at MacLaren had "allowed convicted burglars and drug traffickers to care for children" without proper background checks.

In lawsuits, children who had lived there alleged that staff members had crawled into their bunks at night and sexually assaulted them.

"On behalf of the County, I apologize wholeheartedly to everyone who was harmed by these reprehensible acts," LA County CEO Fesia Davenport said in a statement earlier this month, before the settlement was finally approved.

"The historic scope of this settlement makes clear that we are committed to helping the survivors recover and rebuild their lives - and to making and enforcing the systemic changes needed to keep young people safe," she added.

Mr Becker told the BBC one of the key parts of the settlement was to "get justice without bankrupting the county".

But LA officials have warned that the settlement could have significant long-term financial implications, calling it "the costliest financial settlement in the history of LA County".

The $4bn will be paid out over five years.

It eclipses the $2.4bn settlement reached in 2022 by the Boy Scouts of America over tens of thousands of abuse claims - which was the previous biggest payout of its kind.