Leading Abuse and Assault Attorneys Pursue Justice Through the Civil Legal System for Victims in Maryland, Illinois, and Beyond
For decades, children detained in juvenile detention centers throughout Maryland were subjected to horrific physical and sexual abuse that allegedly included brutal beatings and rapes. With the guidance of Anapol Weiss shareholder Kristen Gibbons Feden, shareholder Alexandra Walsh, and partner Holly Dolejsi, along with co-counsel at other firms, hundreds of survivors have now taken legal action, as the Associated Press reported.
Confronting a Pattern of Systemic Abuse in MD Juvenile Detention Facilities
As the ongoing lawsuits against the Maryland Department of Juvenile Services allege, the lengthy and pervasive sexual abuse that took place in juvenile detention centers was no coincidence but instead the result of a systemic pattern of failures. The victims ranged in age, including children as young as seven as well as teenagers, and encompassed both boys and girls. In some instances, the victims reported being bribed with rewards in exchange for silence and compliance. In other cases, the victims were threatened and even physically restrained.
Although some survivors claimed that they came forward at the time, alleging that abuse at the detention facilities resulted in their physical injuries, transmission of sexually transmitted diseases, and other harm, their statements were often not believed by healthcare providers. Those who claim to have reported the abuse to facility administrators allege that facility directors did nothing to stop abuse from occurring not only at the hands of correctional officers but also counselors, nurses, teachers, and librarians.
Notably, the lawsuits currently underway aren’t isolated to one or two facilities. Instead, the complaints currently filed include 15 juvenile detention facilities, some of which have closed their doors. The allegations highlight a widespread and disturbing pattern of abuse across the network of juvenile detention facilities throughout the state.
Survivors Can Get Justice—Even Decades Later
The 200 survivors represented in the current wave of lawsuits have been empowered by legislative changes enacted by the Maryland Child Victims Act of 2023—namely, the elimination of the state’s statute of limitations that restricted the time victims of childhood sexual abuse had to file civil claims. It’s not too late for abuse survivors to come forward and hold Maryland’s juvenile justice system accountable. Among the cases currently filed are lawsuits on behalf of victims who were abused as early as 1969.
For survivors who have lived with the consequences of childhood sexual abuse for years or even decades, taking action now offers critical opportunities for holding these institutions accountable and recovering financial resources for the future. Although the trauma victims of childhood abuse suffered should never have happened, it’s not too late to receive the care that can help you heal as fully as possible from the physical and psychological harm caused by abuse.
Leading the Charge for Justice for Child Sexual Abuse Victims Nationwide
The problem of systemic abuse in juvenile detention centers isn’t limited to Maryland. Our institutional abuse attorneys fight for children and adults who have been mistreated and assaulted nationwide. In addition to our efforts on behalf of survivors of juvenile detention center abuse in Maryland, we, along with our co-counsel at other firms, have been involved in ongoing legal action on behalf of hundreds of victims of sexual abuse in government-run Illinois Youth Centers and Illinois juvenile detention facilities, such as the Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center. With the filing of 133 complaints on February 10, 2025, the total number of survivors seeking legal action amounted to 800.
Our team of institutional sexual abuse lawyers has a long and distinguished history of fighting for the abused and assaulted. Kristen Gibbons Feden’s career includes two eight-figure verdicts obtained on a single day in 2023—a $10.5 million verdict for survivors of terroristic threats made by singer and entertainer R. Kelly and a $22 million verdict for a survivor sexually abused by a prominent New York pediatrician. Against the same pediatrician, she obtained 75 verdicts, totaling over $1.3 billion, for survivors of sexual abuse in early 2024. As a prosecutor, she stared down Bill Cosby and delivered powerful closing arguments that were instrumental in securing the actor’s conviction for sexual assault in 2018.
Alexandra Walsh devotes much of her legal practice to standing up for survivors of sexual abuse and assault. With Feden, she is actively working to hold tech companies like Roblox, an online gaming platform, and Discord, a communications platform, accountable for their role in allowing rampant sexual exploitation of minors to occur on the digital playground, with serious consequences that extend to psychological harm and physical safety risks in the real world. The two attorneys are also leading litigation against the real estate moguls known as the Alexander Brothers, who are accused of running a sex trafficking scheme.
Holly Dolejsi, an experienced attorney who has a history of leading multidistrict litigation cases on behalf of numerous plaintiffs, is a central part of our team devoted to seeking justice for victims of child sexual abuse. Along with Walsh, she holds a leadership role in the MDL In re Uber Technologies, Inc. Passenger Sexual Assault Litigation, through which survivors are seeking to hold the rideshare company accountable for failing to prevent sexual assaults committed by its drivers against passengers.
Get the Compassionate Legal Guidance You Need at No Upfront Cost
The cases already filed against juvenile detention centers in Illinois and Maryland are only the tip of the iceberg. Across the country, children housed in these correctional facilities are being threatened, restrained, and brutally victimized by authority figures. Instead of rehabilitation and hope for the future, survivors leave these facilities with physical injuries, emotional trauma, and a lifetime of consequences—all because an institution’s negligence allowed predators unfettered access to vulnerable victims.
If you, too, are a survivor of sexual abuse, it’s time to come forward. Across the country, state laws are changing to extend the time victims have to take legal action over childhood sexual abuse. This means that survivors who have waited years or even decades for validation can finally get the justice and compensation they deserve.
Our institutional abuse attorneys can help you explore your rights and legal options, approaching your case with the utmost compassion, professionalism, and commitment to protecting your privacy. We know the institutions that facilitate patterns of abuse are powerful and influential, but we’re ready to stand with you and expose the critical failures that give rise to systemic abuse. Together, we can hold juvenile detention centers and other institutions that enable childhood sexual abuse accountable.
