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TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A Georgia couple is suing a Kansas organization that once helped run the state's privatized foster care system, claiming that the company failed to inform them that one of the three children they adopted had abusive tendencies.
The Topeka Capital-Journal (http://bit.ly/1BIiofO ) reports that in 2012, a couple adopted three brothers and took them to Georgia after being approached by TFI Family Services. The couple alleges that one of the brothers, a 7-year-old, exhibited inappropriate behavior toward other children. They eventually had him removed from their home, saying it was one of the most difficult decisions of their lives.
In a legal filing, TFI and an employee involved in the adoption process have denied all allegations of misrepresenting the boy's history. TFI has declined comment on the case.
The couple said that when they first tried to meet the boy, TFI told them that he was on vacation with his foster family.
On June 28, the couple and the 7-year-old had an arranged meeting at the hotel where the couple was staying. The TFI employee who brought the child to the couple handed them a bag that had six bottles of prescription medications, according to the lawsuit, but said she had met the boy that day and did not know what the medications were for.
The couple went ahead with the adoption process and took the brothers to Georgia in July. Once home, the 7-year-old, known as T.N. in the lawsuit, began to behave inappropriately.
"During the first weeks in his new home, T.N. exhibited concerning and inappropriate behaviors. He constantly lied. He was violent to other children in the home and at school. He created delusional, fantastical stories with no meaning or basis with the intent to deceive others for apparently no reason," the lawsuit said.
After obtaining the boy's medical records through a pediatrician, the couple learned that the child had been in therapy in mental health facilities, including the time when TFI claimed he was on vacation with his foster family. The medical records also show that he had a history of attempting to molest other children. The lawsuit also says that the employee who dropped the child off at the hotel and claimed no knowledge of his medical history was the one who signed the child's mental health forms and discharge documents from the mental health institution and took him from there to his foster family.
This is the third active federal lawsuit against the Emporia-based company. Despite losing its state contract in 2013, the company continues to operate as a subcontractor for organizations with state contracts and sponsors about 700 children.
The Associated Press is not identifying the couple involved in the lawsuit to avoid identifying the child.
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Information from: The Topeka (Kan.) Capital-Journal, http://www.cjonline.com
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