Marisol v. Giuliani
United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
929 F. Supp. 662 (1996)
Eleven minors (plaintiffs) formerly or presently in the custody of New York City's Child Welfare Administration (CWA) (defendant) alleged CWA's acts and omissions led to their abuse, neglect, and improper placements; named plaintiff Marisol, for instance, was returned by CWA to a mother with a documented history of abusing her, and multiple subsequent abuse reports to CWA went unaddressed. Plaintiffs sued under § 1983 for violations of substantive due process and of federal statutes including the Adoption Assistance Act, CAPTA, and the ADA; CWA moved to dismiss.
Whether, where a social-services agency's child-welfare and custodial procedures contributed to children being abused and otherwise placed in inadequate residential environments, the children have a right to sue the state for violating their rights under the Constitution and federal statutes.