In this case, filed on August 8, 2001, attorneys for the ACLU of Colorado allege that contractors providing services to the Colorado Division of Youth Corrections mistreated 15-year-old Abel and 12-year-old Diana Lamas.
According to the complaint, the plaintiffs were not accused of doing anything wrong. On the contrary, they were suspected victims of child abuse. The suit alleges that they were unjustly imprisoned for seven days, denied visits and the right to telephone family members, and were paraded through the Denver airport and other public places on multiple occasions while shackled with leg chains and handcuffs that were sometimes so tight they caused physical injury.
The defendants are Correctional Connections, Inc., which was responsible for transporting the children; Youthtrack, Inc., which operates the Fillmore Youth Detention Center; and Stout Street Foundation, which operates the Dahlia Street Youth Detention Center.
The lawsuit seeks compensation for the children as well as changes in policies designed to prevent similar occurrences in the future.
ACLU news releases:
- "Suspected victims of child abuse shackled, jailed, and treated like criminals, ACLU charges in federal lawsuit," ACLU News Release, August 8, 2001
ACLU case number
2001-05