My Child Was Inappropriately Touched at Daycare, Can I Sue?

“My child was inappropriately touched at daycare, can I sue?” is a question that many parents have after noticing the signs of sexual abuse. If your child was the victim of inappropriate touching by members of a San Antonio Tx daycare staff, you have probably considered legal action to see that those responsible are held accountable. However, the legal process can seem intimidating, and you may be unsure where to begin.

Fortunately, the Texas personal injury lawyers at Carabin Shaw can help. Our legal team has extensive experience helping parents like you pursue daycare abuse claims. For more information about our services, call us at 800-862-1260 to schedule a free, no-obligation case review and consultation. Our Spanish- and English-speaking staff is ready to assist you 24/7.

If you suspect that your child has experienced abuse at daycare, the following steps will help you and your family begin dealing with this traumatic situation:

• Take your child to a pediatrician to check for physical signs of abuse and for advice on what further medical steps to take
• Find a trustworthy child psychologist
• Contact the police and child welfare authorities to open an investigation into the daycare facility
• Look for other options for childcare

Medical bills, therapist bills, and the cost of finding a new daycare can add up. A San Antonio sexual abuse attorney can help you recoup these costs with a lawsuit, which can also give you the peace of mind that those responsible for the abuse of your child are facing consequences. However, you might not be sure how realistic this option is.

With the help of an attorney, you can sue a daycare facility for abuse. Your lawsuit will be a civil one, meaning that, if successful, the parties responsible for the abuse will not face prison time (as they would in a criminal suit), but will have to pay a large settlement.

The state may pursue a criminal suit against the daycare facility at the same time as your civil suit. The outcome of one suit will not affect the other. Even if the daycare employees and/or owners named in your lawsuit avoid criminal charges, an experienced San Antonio Tx child sexual abuse lawyer can still help you receive a settlement in civil court. In fact, civil lawsuits are more likely to be successful than criminal ones.

Sometimes, the victims of child abuse only come forward about their experiences, or recall them in the first place, years after the fact. If this is the case for your child, you may be worried that the case is now out of the statute of limitations.

However, the state of Texas accounts for this possibility. For child sexual abuse cases, the statute of limitations is 20 years beginning on the child’s 18th birthday, rather than the date that the abuse occurred. Even if you only learn of the abuse long after it happened, you can still sue.

Civil settlements can be comprised of three different types of damages:

• Economic damages, including the cost of medical care and mental health care
• Noneconomic damages, such as pain and suffering
• Punitive or exemplary damages, which act as an additional punishment for offenses as particularly grievous as child abuse.
• A knowledgeable sexual abuse lawyer can tell you what kind of settlement to expect if your lawsuit is successful.

If you have any further questions about pursuing a daycare abuse lawsuit, call 800-862-1260 to set up your free initial consultation and case review with the Texas personal injury lawyers at Carabin Shaw. Our team has the knowledge, the experience, and the compassion to help your family through the legal process during this unimaginably difficult time.