by Justin Muszynski,
An attorney representing Connecticut woman who alleges she was sexually assaulted thousands of times by her guardian who also fathered her child when she was 13 has filed a multi-million dollar claim against the state Department of Children and Families, alleging that the agency, during numerous involvements, could have intervened and prevented further abuse.
The claim, filed with the Office of the Claims Commissioner, seeks $30 million and was filed by Middletown-based attorney Nate Baber on behalf of his client, Crystal B. Baber has also brought civil litigation against the man accused of sexually assaulting Crystal, 64-year-old Roger Barriault, and his wife, 48-year-old Darlene Barriault, of Bristol.
DCF could not be named in the lawsuit because of its status as a state agency, Baber said. The claim he has filed against DCF had to be brought in a separate proceeding.
“The only thing we can sue for — although this is not technically a lawsuit — is for money damages,” Baber told the Courant. “But generally speaking, the reason why she’s been willing to come forward and share her story given the unique nature of what happened to her is so that there can be a better understanding and awareness of an agency that still has, from our perspective, quite a long way to go to continue to serve its purpose of protecting children.
“So obviously she wants to make sure that, to the extent that she’s sharing her story, that it’s used to promote the idea for both the survivors and others that this is still happening to,” Baber added. “She wants to be an example of how, one, to address those issues, but also if she can illuminate some of the existing problems with DCF.”
“First and foremost, our hearts go out to the victim, and we applaud her bravery for coming forward,” DCF Commissioner Jodi Hill-Lilly said in a statement. “As always, we are grateful for the collaboration of law enforcement and for their work to help hold this individual accountable and bring forth justice.”
Hill-Lilly went on to say that the “events in question” occurred over 15 years ago and that DCF is limited in what it can share due to confidentiality statutes and the pending criminal and civil litigation. The agency is allowed, however, to clarify what it has described as “misinformation” that has previously been reported.
“To that end, it has been reported that DCF ‘lost track’ of the victim and a prior legal guardian in 2005,” Hill-Lilly said. “To clarify, the department had no involvement with the child or any of the involved families between 2003-2006. Also, Mr. Barriault and his wife were never licensed foster parents for the Department and the now adult victim was not placed into the home of Roger Barriault by the Department. The family received guardianship of the victim via the Probate Court as a child.”
Regardless of whether DCF placed Crystal with the Barriaults or not and whether they were licensed foster parents, Baber said the agency had a duty to protect a child who DCF allegedly had reason to believe was being sexually abused. Even after it was discovered that Barriault allegedly fathered Crystal’s child, Baber claimed that DCF still did not intervene enough.
“Our claim centers around the idea that DCF has a statutory duty, they have an obligation to investigate abuse and neglect allegations and protect children,” Baber said. “That’s aside from any role they have in the management of foster care, agency of foster parents, of foster children. That’s a separate duty that they have and regardless of whether he was a guardian or whether he was a foster parent.”
Upon reviewing DCF records tied to his client, Baber claims that the agency appeared to put minimal efforts into doing anything more than closing investigations as quickly as possible.
According to the arrest warrant affidavit, Crystal first reported the allegations to the Bristol Police Department as an adult in May 2023. She reportedly had been placed in foster care when she was between 6 months and 2 years old and was living in a Bristol home around 2004 when she was 8 or 9. It was around this time that she was introduced to Barriault, who was allegedly “often allowed to be left alone” with her and “nearly immediately” allegedly began grooming her, Baber’s lawsuit contends.
Crystal alleged that Barriault first sexually assaulted her in 2004, when she was at her foster mother’s home, the warrant affidavit said. There were two more similar alleged instances involving Barriault before the girl’s foster mother moved to another state, at which point she reportedly began living at a residence with Barriault and his wife, where he allegedly continued sexually abusing her for almost a decade, according to the warrant affidavit.
Baber contends in the lawsuit that, around 2006, DCF learned that Crystal was living with Barriault while he was being investigated for sexual abuse allegations involving another minor child. Police wrote in the arrest warrant affidavit that Barriault was reportedly arrested for “similar sexual misconduct” in 2007, at which point Crystal was temporarily removed from his home before being returned to his custody when the charges were dropped.
In September 2008, Crystal, who had since turned 13, reportedly gave birth to Barriault’s child, according to court papers.
During an interview with detectives, Crystal told police she estimated Barriault sexually assaulted her thousands of times “almost daily” until she was about 20 years old, the arrest warrant affidavit said. She estimated that she was sexually assaulted somewhere between 3,800 to 4,000 times between 2004 and 2015.
Though DCF representatives say the agency cannot comment on many specifics involved in Crystal’s case, Ken Mysogland, chief administrator of external affairs, said he could provide some of the general practices that are used.
“When a child is brought to our attention to be an alleged victim of child maltreatment, best practice is, they are interviewed alone and apart from the alleged perpetrator,” Mysogland said in a statement. “There are particular cases whereby a child may be referred to a multidisciplinary team for a forensic interview.”
The
criminal cases against the Barriaults remain pending in New Britain
Superior Court. Roger Barriault faces one count each of first-degree
sexual assault and risk of injury to a child. Darlene Barriault has been charged with one count of risk of injury to a child.
Full Article & Source:
CT woman allegedly impregnated by guardian at age 12 files $30 million claim against DCF
