Nine additional adults filed notice this week alleging they were sexually abused as children by guards at a juvenile detention facility in Clark County, Washington, bringing the total number of claimants to 17. Here is what the new claims describe and how survivors who were never contacted by these attorneys can still look into their own case.
Reviewed by Abuse Justice Center · Updated 2026-07-30
Figures drawn from this week's filing and reporting on the earlier February lawsuit.
This week, nine more adults came forward alleging that guards at a Clark County, Washington juvenile detention facility sexually abused them while they were incarcerated as children between the ages of 12 and 17. Their accounts describe guards forcing sexual acts, sharing explicit material with those in custody, and, in some cases, touching themselves or commenting on children's bodies while they were forced to sit unclothed.
Several of the new claimants say the abuse took place in areas of the facility away from routine supervision, including storage closets, shower areas, and individual cells, and that guards used small rewards or the threat of punishment to keep children from reporting what happened to them.
Eight survivors first filed a lawsuit over this same facility back in February, describing a similar pattern of abuse across the same roughly two-decade span. Attorneys representing those survivors say that after that first filing became public, they began hearing from others with similar experiences at the same facility, which is what led to this week's additional claims.
With this week's filings, the total number of people alleging abuse at this one facility has grown to 17. Attorneys expect that number could continue to grow as more former detainees learn that a legal path exists and that they are not the only ones who experienced this.
Juvenile detention abuse lawsuits have been in the news in several states this year, involving different counties and different facilities entirely. This case centers on a single Washington state facility and its own set of alleged guards and supervisors, separate from any similar lawsuits filed in other states or against other juvenile justice systems.
That distinction matters if you were held somewhere else. A claim tied to this Washington facility does not cover, and is not covered by, anything alleged in a different state's juvenile detention lawsuit, so it is worth confirming the specific facility and time period involved in your own experience.
If you spent time in this facility, or any juvenile detention center, youth camp, or training facility, and experienced abuse, you do not need to already be one of the 17 people named in these filings to pursue your own claim. A separate civil case can be built around your own experience and timeline.
A free, confidential conversation with an attorney who handles institutional abuse claims can help you understand whether your experience fits within Washington's filing deadlines for childhood sexual abuse, what kind of records or corroborating detail might support a case, and what pursuing a claim against a county-run facility typically involves. Attorneys who take these cases generally work on contingency, so there is no cost unless they recover money for you.
Whenever a facility abuse case grows to include more claimants, it raises the same question for people who have not yet come forward: is it too late, and do I have to join an existing case?
Abuse Justice Center is a lawyer-matching and advocacy service, not a law firm, and nothing here is legal advice. Matching and consultations are free, and network attorneys work on contingency. Need support now? The RAINN hotline is 800-656-4673, 24/7.
No. You can pursue a separate, independent civil claim tied to your own experience at this facility without joining any existing filing.
Not directly, since it is specific to this Washington facility, but a similar path may be available for your own facility and timeline. It is worth discussing with an attorney.
Many states, including Washington, have expanded how much time survivors of childhood sexual abuse have to file. An attorney can review whether your timeline still allows a claim.
No. A civil claim can proceed even without a prior police report from the time of the abuse.