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Another sex abuse lawsuit filed against Hanna Boys Center, Santa Rosa Diocese
The Press Democrat - 9/19/2017
Sept. 19--Another former resident of the Hanna Boys Center is suing the Catholic organization that serves at-risk boys, claiming the agency failed to protect him from being sexually abused by a female staff member.
The now 18-year-old man filed the civil lawsuit Tuesday in Sonoma County Superior Court against the Sonoma Valley residential program and the Diocese of Santa Rosa, claiming the center and its staff put him and other youth at risk by providing lax supervision and failed to intervene when a guard saw the woman visit him at night, evidence of a potentially inappropriate situation.
The lawsuit adds to an array of complaints against the embattled center. In an unrelated case, the center's clinical director Kevin Thorpe was arrested in June on suspicion of sexually molesting boys under his care. Thorpe remains in the Sonoma County Jail on $1.5 million bail.
The lawsuit filed Tuesday involves alleged sexual abuse committed by Angelica Malinski, who was charged with misdemeanor sexual assault after the Sonoma County District Attorney's Office issued a warrant for her arrest.
"They exposed him to a sexual predator," said the boy's lawyer, Micha Liberty of Oakland. "They took an already challenged and troubled young man and allowed conduct to occur that has devastated him, which will require lifelong care."
Check back later for updates.
You can reach Staff Writer Julie Johnson at 707-521-5220 or julie.johnson@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @jjpressdem.
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