SPOKANE, Wash. — Earlier this month, a jury found that several Washington state social service agencies and Spokane’s Excelsior Youth Center can be held liable for allegations of negligence by a victim who claims he was physically, sexually and psychologically abused during his time at Excelsior.
The civil case stems from 1995, when the victim claims he was abused during his time at Excelsior Wellness, a non-profit, private agency. The man, who was 10 years old at the time of the incident, claims the center knew about the abuse and did nothing to stop or prevent it.
The case officially went to trial in January, with a grand jury ruling just Feb. 12, that both the state and the center were liable for negligence that resulted in emotional distress. The jury also concluded that although the defendants did inflict emotional distress through negligence, it was not a legal cause of the victims’ physical injuries…