# Los Angeles County reaches $4 billion agreement to settle sexual abuse claims at juvenile facilities **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Tags:** breaking-news\ **Created:** [April 4, 2025, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/los-angeles-county-reaches-4-billion-agreement-to-settle-sexual-abuse-claims-at-juvenile-facilities/1016643 "2025-04-04T20:14:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2025, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/los-angeles-county-reaches-4-billion-agreement-to-settle-sexual-abuse-claims-at-juvenile-facilities/1016643/1 "2025-04-04T20:14:13Z")
> **[LA County reaches $4 billion agreement to settle sexual abuse claims at...](https://apnews.com/article/los-angeles-county-sexual-abuse-juvenile-facilities-37d06fa55aacbe072051546ead07a65b)** > > Officials say Los Angeles County has reached a $4 billion agreement to settle nearly 7,000 claims of sexual abuse in juvenile facilities since 1959. > Thousands of [men and women](https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2023-05-01/la-county-prepares-for-litigation-sexual-abuse-lawsuits) came forward to say they had been molested or raped by probation officials decades ago while incarcerated as children in the county’s sprawling network of juvenile halls and camps. > > Thousands more alleged sexual abuse at the now-shuttered [MacLaren Children’s Center](https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2022-05-17/abuse-allegations-maclaren), a county-run home for foster children that plaintiffs’ attorneys have compared to a “house of horrors.” A report found that the facility went decades without doing criminal background checks on its staff. > > Taken together, the thousands of lawsuits, most of which involve alleged abuse from the 1980s through the 2000s, paint a picture of a government that failed to intervene as its facilities turned into hunting grounds for predators, who held immense power over the children in their custody. > **[In unprecedented payout, L.A. County will settle sex abuse claims for $4 billion](https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-04-04/in-unprecedented-payout-l-a-county-settles-sex-abuse-claims-for-4-billion)** > > The $4 billion, if approved, would appear to dwarf the largest sex abuse settlements in U.S. history. 7,000 cases? That is a huge amount of abuse–particularly in a politically progressive place like LA County where you would expect they would be more sensitive to sex abuse issues. This comes to $571,000/case. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2025, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/los-angeles-county-reaches-4-billion-agreement-to-settle-sexual-abuse-claims-at-juvenile-facilities/1016643/2 "2025-04-04T22:42:00Z")
Since 1959. Long time. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2025, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/los-angeles-county-reaches-4-billion-agreement-to-settle-sexual-abuse-claims-at-juvenile-facilities/1016643/3 "2025-04-04T22:52:07Z")
> [@PastTense](#): > > This comes to $571,000/case. Lawyers will take 1/3 (at least…assuming it was not appealed). That’s closer to $383,000/case. I’d be willing to bet when all is said and done it will be a lot less than that (heck, another $100,000 will probably poof into taxes). ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2025, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/los-angeles-county-reaches-4-billion-agreement-to-settle-sexual-abuse-claims-at-juvenile-facilities/1016643/4 "2025-04-05T00:13:43Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > heck, another $100,000 will probably poof into taxes Lawsuit payouts are not subject to Federal income taxes. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2025, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/los-angeles-county-reaches-4-billion-agreement-to-settle-sexual-abuse-claims-at-juvenile-facilities/1016643/5 "2025-04-05T00:18:16Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > Lawsuit payouts are not subject to Federal income taxes. That seems to only be partially true. [It depends on how the income is categorized.](https://www.irs.gov/government-entities/tax-implications-of-settlements-and-judgments) It’s not easy to sort out it seems. Sometimes it is, sometimes it is not. Some seem taxable including lost wages or profits and punitive damages. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2025, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/los-angeles-county-reaches-4-billion-agreement-to-settle-sexual-abuse-claims-at-juvenile-facilities/1016643/6 "2025-04-05T00:25:51Z")
Thanks for the details. I was thinking of damages exclusively, given the nature of the torts involved. E.g. no back wages here. Often punitives end up really being the plaintiffs’ attorneys’ fees. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2025, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/los-angeles-county-reaches-4-billion-agreement-to-settle-sexual-abuse-claims-at-juvenile-facilities/1016643/7 "2025-04-05T00:31:32Z")
It seems compensation for physical injuries and medical expenses are not taxable. I’m willing to bet the whole list is a long one for what is and is not taxable. I can’t answer it. You’d need a tax attorney (which will also cost you a lot of money). ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2025, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/los-angeles-county-reaches-4-billion-agreement-to-settle-sexual-abuse-claims-at-juvenile-facilities/1016643/8 "2025-04-05T00:38:49Z")
> [@PastTense](#): > > 7,000 cases? That is a huge amount of abuse–particularly in a politically progressive place like LA County where you would expect they would be more sensitive to sex abuse issues. Seriously? I don’t want to pick on Los Angeles too much, but this is a place known to chew up and spit out hopeful young women who arrive with dreams of making it big in Hollywood. For about a century now, the most famous industry in LA has been know to be exploitive as hell. The truth is that large institutions are remarkably good about ignoring evidence of sexual abuse or outright sweeping it under the rug. I don’t think it has a whole lot to do with progressive politics. ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2025, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/los-angeles-county-reaches-4-billion-agreement-to-settle-sexual-abuse-claims-at-juvenile-facilities/1016643/9 "2025-04-05T02:22:43Z")
I’m not clear about the connection you are drawing between the entertainment industry and the juvenile halls and camps run by the county for incarcerated children and un-fostered foster children. Or how it is the entertainment industry’s fault if underage children travel there in the foolish hope of a show business career, and end up committing crimes instead. My propensity to do the simpler math, 7000 cases in about 65 years, comes to about 107 cases per year on average. ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2025, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/los-angeles-county-reaches-4-billion-agreement-to-settle-sexual-abuse-claims-at-juvenile-facilities/1016643/10 "2025-04-05T03:00:10Z")
> [@Roderick\_Femm](#): > > I’m not clear about the connection you are drawing between the entertainment industry and the juvenile halls and camps run by the county for incarcerated children and un-fostered foster children. Or how it is the entertainment industry’s fault if underage children travel there in the foolish hope of a show business career, and end up committing crimes instead. The entertainment industry isn’t at fault. It’s an example of exploitive behavior and abuse centered in an area that’s supposed to be politically progressive. My point was political progressiveness has nothing to do with this kind of abuse. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2025, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/los-angeles-county-reaches-4-billion-agreement-to-settle-sexual-abuse-claims-at-juvenile-facilities/1016643/11 "2025-04-05T03:04:12Z")
> [@Odesio](#): > > The entertainment industry isn’t at fault. It’s an example of exploitive behavior and abuse centered in an area that’s supposed to be politically progressive. My point was political progressiveness has nothing to do with this kind of abuse. This kinda reads like you want to have it both ways. It is a progressive area but progressiveness has nothing to do with it…but it’s progressive. Why bring it up? I’d be willing to say sexual abuse knows no political boundaries. There are creeps on all sides. ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2025, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/los-angeles-county-reaches-4-billion-agreement-to-settle-sexual-abuse-claims-at-juvenile-facilities/1016643/12 "2025-04-05T03:17:41Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > Why bring it up? Did you read the fucking OP? > [@PastTense](#): > > That is a huge amount of abuse–particularly in a politically progressive place like LA County where you would expect they would be more sensitive to sex abuse issues. I wasn’t the one who brought it up. I was making the point this kind of abuse has nothing to do with how progressive the politics of an area might be. (No shade directed at you @PastTense.) ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2025, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/los-angeles-county-reaches-4-billion-agreement-to-settle-sexual-abuse-claims-at-juvenile-facilities/1016643/13 "2025-04-05T03:19:55Z")
> [@Odesio](#): > > Did you read the fucking OP? Sorry if I misread your post. I think we agree on this. ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2025, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/los-angeles-county-reaches-4-billion-agreement-to-settle-sexual-abuse-claims-at-juvenile-facilities/1016643/14 "2025-04-05T03:24:12Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > Sorry if I misread your post. I think we agree on this. Holy cow, I was way out of line. I apologize. ---
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2025, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/los-angeles-county-reaches-4-billion-agreement-to-settle-sexual-abuse-claims-at-juvenile-facilities/1016643/15 "2025-04-05T12:24:27Z")
> [@Odesio](#): > > My point was political progressiveness has nothing to do with this kind of abuse. On top of that, LA hasn’t always been a hotbed of progressive ideas. It wasn’t too long ago Los Angeles had Republican mayor Richard Riordan in the 90s. Anyway, it’s crazy and sad to think about how many kids got lost into this abusive system. I would hope other large cities do better, and LA county does better going forward.