Settlement includes financial compensation to resolve dispute
For Immediate Release
Moore County, NC has paid a five-figure sum to settle a family’s legal claims that the Moore County Department of Social Services (MCDSS) violated federal disability rights law by continuing to institutionalize two siblings with intellectual and developmental disabilities after their mother returned home from a temporary hospitalization for cancer treatment, among other allegations. The settlement follows an earlier district court decision from the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina denying Moore County’s motion to dismiss the family’s claims under the Americans with Disabilities Act, allowing the case to proceed toward resolution. Disability Rights North Carolina (DRNC) represented the family in the lawsuit.
According to the complaint, both children experienced significant physical and emotional regression while in MCDSS custody. “JS,” then 16 years old, spent months separated from his family in an institutional placement known as an Intermediate Care Facility (ICF). “SS,” then 15 years old, spent nine months in the Pediatric Emergency Department at UNC Chapel Hill before being sent to a South Carolina psychiatric residential treatment facility (PRTF) four hours away from her family home. When their mother, Ms. Rumina Slazas, visited SS at the PRTF, she observed bruises and bite marks that the facility could not explain and watched as SS was unable to focus her eyes.
The siblings could have lived in the community, as demonstrated by the fact that they lived in the community before they were removed and after they were returned to their mother, according to the complaint filed in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina. The complaint alleges that MCDSS unnecessarily institutionalized the children instead of providing community-based, home-like services during their mother’s cancer treatment, and refused to return them to her home after she was declared in remission.
“I did nothing wrong to lose my kids, I just got sick,” said Ms. Slazas. “This settlement does not undo the trauma my children and I experienced, but I am hopeful it results in better outcomes for other children with significant disabilities in the child welfare system.”
Monetary settlements in unnecessary institutionalization cases are rare. Typically, these kinds of claims result in a court order for different placement or supports for the children. “While no amount of money will ever make the Slazas family whole, this settlement demonstrates that survivors of unlawful institutionalization deserve compensation,” said Holly Stiles, Assistant Legal Director for Litigation at DRNC.
Before MCDSS took custody of the siblings, JS was an extremely social teen who loved to explore and meet new people. SS was curious about interacting with people and visiting new places. Since coming home, JS no longer trusts people easily and self-harms by hitting his head when his stress levels escalate. SS has stopped independently toileting and has separation anxiety.
“The law requires that kids with disabilities receive services in the most integrated setting appropriate to their needs. This case and the settlement reached on behalf of this family highlight the real harms that happen when children are institutionalized,” said Virginia Knowlton Marcus, Chief Executive Officer of Disability Rights NC.
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About Disability Rights North Carolina
Disability Rights North Carolina is the federally mandated protection and advocacy system in North Carolina, dedicated to advancing the rights of all people with disabilities, of all ages, statewide. DRNC is an independent, 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and a member of the National Disability Rights Network. Learn more about Disability Rights North Carolina at disabilityrightsnc.org.
Contact: Corye Dunn
Phone: 919-856-2195
Email: corye.dunn@disabilityrightsnc.org