A dispute between the family of a three-year-old girl and the city of Napa recently settled for $5 million. The lawsuit was filed by the family shortly after the death of Kayleigh Slusher, who tragically passed away in 2014 after she was tortured and killed in a Napa apartment.
A dispute between the family of a three-year-old girl and the city of Napa recently settled for $5 million. The lawsuit was filed by the family shortly after the death of Kayleigh Slusher, who tragically passed away in 2014 after she was tortured and killed in a Napa apartment. According to the suit, she was being “neglected and abused by her mother, Sarah Krueger, and her mother’s boyfriend, Ryan Warner.” Since the incident, both Krueger and Warner have been “convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison.”
What happened, though? Well, according to the lawsuit, in the weeks prior to Kayleigh’s death, Napa County child services and Napa police “had been called to the girl’s home five times regarding possible abuse and drug use.” The suit further states that when the officers visited the home, “they would have seen that she was covered in bruises and in excruciating pain from a broken rib and the intestinal infection that was slowly killing her, but they did nothing.”
Unfortunately and tragically, the child died from the abuse inflicted by her mother and mother’s boyfriend. To make matters worse, after her death, her body was stuffed “in a duffel bag and stored in the freezer for three days before she was placed in her bed, where police ultimately found her.” According to the suit, the cause of death was “multiple blunt-force injuries to her head, torso, and extremities.” Additionally, she had “suffered a broken rib and damage to her small intestine and was covered in bruises before she died, authorities said at the time.”
At the time of the child’s death, her father, Jason Slusher, was serving a prison sentence. With the help of Kayleigh’s grandmother, Robin Slusher, Jason ended up filing a lawsuit against the county and city in 2015 alleging that “despite obvious signs of abuse and neglect, police and child welfare officials did not intervene or remove Kayleigh from her mother’s home.” Fortunately for the family, a settlement was reached that requires the “city and county to each pay $2.5 million to the Slushers over several years.”
When commenting on the settlement agreement, Deputy County Executive Officer Molly Rattigan said:
“While the county and Child Welfare Services maintains that CWS followed state law when responding to the complaint of abuse or neglect … we came to the decision that it was best to end the litigation and settle the case.”
In addition to the settlement funds, the county Child Welfare Services will implement “changes to more intensely review calls to its child abuse hotline.” Additionally, Napa Police Department has already “improved its policies for reporting suspected child abuse and boosted training for officers and dispatchers since the girl’s death.” In a statement, the city said:
“Kayleigh Slusher’s death was a terrible tragedy. The City and County of Napa have committed to doing everything in their power to prevent and protect other children from suffering child abuse and neglect.”
Sources:
Napa city and county to pay $5 million to settle lawsuit with family over 3-year-old girl’s death
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