[ Id. Auto. The ultimate duty of the court is to "determine whether the complaint sufficiently alleges facts supporting all the elements necessary to establish an entitlement to relief under the legal theory proposed." About a month after his adoption, the couples first boy began showing troubling signs, including a bloody stool, hair loss and a loss of appetite. [See generally #22] In Colorado, "[t]he critical inquiry of when an action accrues is knowledge of the facts essential to the cause of action, not knowledge of the legal theory upon which the action may be brought." Shortly after joining the family, J would wake up screaming and crying, and N would run into his parents room to get in bed with them, the lawsuit states. Both N and J were diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder as well as attachment disorder, the lawsuit reads, which has left both boys with feelings of rage, irritability, anxiety and sleep disturbances, according the lawsuit. Weve asked Dan to discuss the legal rights available to families affected by sexual abuse caused by adoption agency negligence: Adoption agencies have a legal responsibility to make sure that their clients are protected from preventable dangers, including sexual abuse. [#1] Plaintiffs filed the operative First Amended Complaint and Jury Demand (the "Amended Complaint") on October 29, 2019. The lawsuit states the couple discovered Ls alarm would go off every night at 3 a.m., when he would rape his adoptive brothers. The couple confronted the boy, who admitted to the rapes, the documents show. Adopting Siblings A Family for Every Child (2020) J complained of pains in the buttocks, but at first the couple believed the pain was from cigarette burns he had received while being abused in a Chinese orphanage, the lawsuit said. Becky Weichhand, executive director of the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute (CCAI), has passed away at the age of 36 after a battle with cancer. Children's Aid Society in Clearfield County . The Amended Complaint includes no allegations as to who represented that J's scar was not from brain surgery, when that statement was made, or how CCAI otherwise explained J's scar when the Martins asked. The lawsuit also says that, CCAI also knew or should have known that the orphanage minor child L was adopted from had a reputation for prostituting the children in its care to adults.. 1998 - 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. | All Rights Reserved. Copyright 2019 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. It also says the boy sexually assaulted other children and was sexually assaulted by adults at an orphanage in China. The civil lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court of Colorado Tuesday against Chinese Children Adoption International (CCAI) on behalf of the couple and their two Chinese boys. at 79] In actuality, J had undergone massive brain surgery in March 2011. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. CCAI now has adoption offices in Florida, Texas, Wyoming, Kentucky and Georgia, it said. at 2 n.1] CCAI provides certain information on a waiting child to the applicant, including photographs, a physical examination, medical information relating to the child's condition, if available, basic developmental information, and background information from the orphanage, based on the child's personality, preferences, history in the orphanage, and daily routine. L told his adoptive parents he had been raped and prostituted at the orphanage he was adopted from in China, according to the lawsuit, which further states that CAAI denied knowing Ls sexual history and that the Centennial-based adoption agency was aware that Minor Child L was at least three to five years older than originally presented.. First, Plaintiffs' claims, as CCAI recognizes, are not solely premised on CCAI's alleged failure to act, but also on CCAI's affirmative actions in the form of purported misrepresentations. Myers, 2009 WL 1292828, at *3 (quoting Wagner v. Grange Ins. R. Civ. After discovering Ls alleged sexual crimes, the parents say that they contacted Chinese Children Adoption International and that an employee denied knowing about the teens history of sexual abuse. The Barker Adoption Foundation. Casetext, Inc. and Casetext are not a law firm and do not provide legal advice. at 72-73] The Martins lost their health care business, and both N and J have post-traumatic stress disorder ("PTSD"), attachment disorder, and numerous other mental and physical health conditions, including irritability, sleep disturbance, rage, and anxiety. The lawsuit says that the parents had to sell their house at a loss and move to Washington state because of the financial and emotional damages caused by the abuse. Christian Adoption Services. The couple from Terre Haute, Indiana, began adopting Chinese children after their six children became adults, the lawsuit states, adopting a child identified as N in 2014 through Bethany Christian Services. CCAI was ranked by the Chinese government as the number one adoption agency in the world in 2011 and by 2012, had placed 11,000 Chinese orphans into U.S. homes, the website said. [Id. The Terre Haute, Indiana couple began adopting Chinese children after their six children reached adulthood, the lawsuit said. 6920 South Holly Circle, Centennial, Colorado 80112, Secretary of State(s), Chinese Consulate(s), Prior to receiving child match acceptance letter, Chinese Consulate via a courier/travel agency, Approximately one month before travel to China, $1,000 $2,000 per traveler (adopted child over 2 requires full ticket). Within a month after Ls adoption, the couples first boy started showing signs of a problem, including a loss of appetite and hair loss, the lawsuit said. 2013) (citing Brown v. Montoya, 662 F.3d 1152, 1162 (10th Cir. Ass'n, 166 P.3d 304, 307 (Colo. App. [Id.] at 12-13] A waiting child is a child that has been evaluated by the agency and can be matched and subsequently adopted by a prospective adoptive applicant. at 74-78], The Martins have also incurred unexpected health costs related to J's medical conditions. In 2015, they adopted a boy they believed was 12 through the Centennial agency. CCAI | 321 followers on LinkedIn. In 2016, the couple used the Centennial agency to adopt a third boy, age 5, who was identified in court records as J. J would awake screaming and crying, and N would run into his parents room every night, the lawsuit said. This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. [#21 at 20] In March 2014, the Martins adopted Minor Child N ("N") from China through Bethany Christian Services. Located in Los Angeles, Orange County, San Francisco, Silicon Valley, Chicago, New York, Boston, Washington DC, and Philadelphia, Three . The agency reports CCAI is currently accredited. (quotation omitted) (citing cases). 17-cv-00677-CMA-MJW, 2018 WL 1035085, at *3 (D. Colo. Feb. 23, 2018) ("Any claimincluding claims for breach of contract and negligent misrepresentationmay be subject to Rule 9(b)'s heightened pleading standard if the claim is grounded in fraud." A married couple from Terre Haute, Indiana has filed a lawsuit against the Centennial-based agency Chinese Children Adoption International(CCAI), alleging that the agency failed to disclose that a teenage boy they adopted had been sexually abused and that this failure allowed two younger children in their home to be abused by that teen. Entered By Magistrate Judge Scott T. Varholak, This matter is before the Court on Defendant Chinese Children Adoption International's Motion to Dismiss (the "Motion"). As discussed above, Plaintiffs allegations that CCAI knew L's approximate age "upon information and belief," and that CCAI deliberately led Plaintiffs to believe that L was approximately two to three years younger than his actual age, without any supporting facts, are completely conclusory and insufficient to state a claim. CCAI | 353 followers on LinkedIn. "To recover on a negligence claim, a plaintiff must establish that (1) the defendant owed the plaintiff a legal duty of care; (2) the defendant breached that duty; (3) the plaintiff was injured; and (4) the defendant's breach caused that injury." During this suspension, CCAI must cease to provide all services in connection with intercountry adoption cases. 22] The adoption of N was a positive experience for the Martins and for N, and the Martins decided to adopt another child as a sibling for N. [Id. CCAI also knew or should have known that the orphanage minor child L was adopted from had a reputation for prostituting the children in its care to adults, the lawsuit said. CCAI is a licensed, non-profit, Hague-accredited agency serving families in the US and around the world, and we have placed more than 13,000 children since 1992. CCAI has adoption programs in China, Bulgaria, Ukraine, Taiwan, Colombia, and here in the United States. and view these allegations in the light most favorable to the plaintiff." CCAI is grateful to its co-founder and outgoing Board Chair, the Honorable Mary Landrieu, for her commitment to CCAI and its belief that . The Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute (CCAI) educates and advocates to raise awareness of the needs of children without families. In 2016, the couple adopted a third Chinese boy through CCAI, identified as J in the lawsuit. As CCAI notes, in a nonfeasance case, where the defendant is alleged to have failed to act, Colorado courts have only recognized a legal duty owed to a plaintiff in six specified types of relationships, including common carrier/passenger, innkeeper/guest, possessor of land/invited entrant, employer/employee, parent/child, and China Adoption: Step 1 The first stage of adoption in China involves assembling a collection of documents called a dossier. Adoption is a lifelong journey, and we are here for you every step of the way. at 24], On September 18, 2015, the Martins adopted minor child L ("L") through Defendant Chinese Children Adoption International ("CCAI"). The couple filed the lawsuit against CCAI in a Denver U.S. District Court on Tuesday, August 13. Lawsuits erupted in the 1980s over domestic adoptions in which histories of abuse and other problems were kept from adoptive parents. at 27] CCAI is an adoption agency that matches "waiting children" with applicants for a fee. Zhong, the adoption agencys founder, earned a theological doctorate at the University of Denver in 1989 and formed CCAI in Denver in 1992, CCAIs website said. Find unique places to stay with local hosts in 191 countries. may be so attenuated that no proximate cause exists as a matter of law." We stand behind our decades-strong reputation as a professional and ethical non-profit having served thousands of families and children here and in China.. Two months later after he arrived at his new home, L was then taken to a behavioral center in Indiana where he told his therapist he still had strong sexual urges that he could not control and would abuse boys again if given the chance. L was charged with two counts of sexual battery and sent to a Terre Haute, Indiana juvenile detention center, the lawsuit states. Plaintiffs include no allegations as to how CCAI "failed to exercise reasonable care or competence in obtaining or communicating" information about L's age. CCAI argues that each of Plaintiff's claims, (1) negligence, (2) negligent misrepresentation, (3) negligent infliction of emotional distress, and (4) fraud, must be dismissed with prejudice. The couple are asking for an unspecified amount of money and a judges order ensuring the adoption agency follow court-ordered protocols that keep families and children safe, according to the lawsuit filed by Indianapolis attorneys Jonathan Little, Derrick Morgan and Annemarie Alonso. Joshua Zhong, the Chinese Children Adoption International co-founder and president. at 25, 29] CCAI is an adoption agency that matches "waiting children" with applicants for a fee. The Court cannot make such a finding on the facts here. [Id. The lawsuit states the couple discovered Ls alarm would go off every night at 3 a.m., when he would rape his adoptive brothers. The couple confronted the boy, who admitted to the rapes, the documents show. The family then moved to adopt a third child, this time seeking one who was special needs, because they said they had the time and medical resources for his care. Hall of Shame-Juanita Shorty and Lenora Harrell. [#29 at 15]. [Id. at 52 ("CCAI represented Minor Child L's birthday as July 3, 2003.")] TAMMY MARTIN and BARRY MARTIN, individually and on behalf of their minor children Minor Child N and Minor Child J, Plaintiffs, v. CHINESE CHILDREN ADOPTION INTERNATIONAL, Defendant. For the following reasons, the Motion is GRANTED IN PART and DENIED IN PART. Because better pleading may cure deficiencies with this claim, CCAI's Motion is DENIED to the extent it seeks dismissal with prejudice and the NIED claim is DISMISSED WITHOUT PREJUDICE. at 37] J complained of pain in his buttocks. [Id. We had an e-mail confirming our request so I'm fairly certain our request went through. 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