Lawsuit Claims Illinois Mayor Is Intercourse Abuser Who Preyed on Incarcerated Boys

Warning: This story describes graphic descriptions of sexual abuse 

A brand new lawsuit alleges a harrowing sample of intercourse abuse inside Illinois juvenile amenities and implicates a former youth middle worker who’s now a small city mayor.

The lawsuit, which was obtained by PEOPLE, has practically 100 plaintiffs and lists the state of Illinois, the Illinois Division of Corrections and/or the Illinois Division of Juvenile Justice as defendants, accusing these entities of allowing rampant intercourse abuse spanning years.

A number of the allegations accuse Rocky James, now the mayor of Eldorado, Sick., of intercourse abuse from 2002 to 2010.

One of many accusers was a teen who’d been incarcerated at Illinois Youth Middle (IYC) -Harrisburg, who alleged his mattress had been taken from him as punishment. Within the grievance, the accuser claims James made quite a few sexual feedback to him and provided to offer again his revoked mattress “if he masturbated him or administered oral copulation on him,” the lawsuit alleges, including that the claimant didn’t comply. 

One other allegation, from a separate claimant, reads, “James put his fingers down [the claimant’s] pants and masturbated him, after which [a correctional officer] administered oral intercourse on [the claimant] and sodomized him whereas Rocky James watched and masturbated himself.”

The id of the correctional officer, referred to within the grievance solely by the nickname “Crank,” isn’t recognized. In accordance with the grievance, the accuser “expects to study the total title and id of his abuser by the course of discovery.”

James can also be accused by a number of the claimants within the lawsuit of creating sexual feedback about their our bodies. The claimants — who say James abused them — had been between the ages of 13 and 17 throughout the time of the alleged abuse. 

In accordance with a March 2011 story within the Harrisburg Register, James, who’s at the moment the Eldorado, Sick., mayor, was employed on the Division of Juvenile Justice at IYC – Harrisburg for a few years. (Within the 2011 story, he acknowledged that he held that place for 26 years at that time.) James has been the Eldorado mayor since 2007. Eldorado is roughly 330 miles south of Chicago and has a inhabitants of lower than 4,000 folks. 

IYC – Harrisburg is a medium-security facility for male youth, in keeping with the John Howard Affiliation, a jail oversight group. In accordance with the Illinois Division of Justice, the power gives a “broad vary of companies to youth incarcerated on the facility,” together with instructional packages, vocational coaching and substance abuse and psychological well being companies.

James didn’t instantly reply to PEOPLE’s request for remark concerning the allegations. The present superintendent at IYC – Harrisburg and the Illinois Division of Justice additionally didn’t instantly reply to PEOPLE’s request for remark.

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Workers members from further IYC amenities in St, Charles, Chicago, Warrenville, Kewanee, Joliet, Murphysboro and Pere Marquette are additionally accused within the lawsuit. The alleged abuse ranges from inappropriate feedback and touching to rape and sodomy. 

A claimant within the lawsuit alleges he was abused at 12 years outdated by an worker at IYC – St. Charles, labeled as Abuser 1, who isn’t recognized.

“Abuser 1 would come into [the accuser’s] cell with different inmates and make the opposite inmates pin down [the accuser], take away his garments and bodily abuse him,” the lawsuit alleges. “Abuser 1 would sodomize [the accuser] along with his fingers and permit the opposite inmates to sodomize [the accuser] with objects resembling a toothbrush and a brush deal with. This occurred on a number of events.”

In accordance with the John Howard Affiliation, IYC – St. Charles is a stage 2 medium-security facility.

“Illinois’ previous is stained with the tears of harmless youngsters, victims of unspeakable horrors ignored by these entrusted with their care,” Todd Mathews, Lead Lawyer for the Bailey Glasser Institutional Abuse litigation crew, tells PEOPLE in an announcement. “However at this time, their silence is shattered: ‘No Extra.’ No extra turning a blind eye, no extra excuses. At the moment, we demand justice for each soul scarred by the system’s negligence. The time for accountability is now.”

The Illinois Division of Corrections didn’t instantly reply to PEOPLE’s request for remark relating to the lawsuit.

In case you or somebody has been sexually assaulted, please contact the Nationwide Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) or go to rainn.org.

In case you or somebody has been a sufferer of sexual abuse, textual content “STRENGTH” to the Disaster Textual content Line at 741-741 to be related to an authorized disaster counselor.