Lawyers for Connecticut’s child welfare agency and a Waterbury man allegedly held captive by his stepmother will argue whether he can sue the state for failing to uncover the abuse during his childhood.
The state's claims commissioner will schedule an oral argument hearing in August after lawyers for the state petitioned earlier this year to dismiss the claim for being untimely.
The alleged victim asserts the Department of Children and Families mishandled investigations into several reports it received about his family between 1996 and 2005.
Had the department done its job, the boy — identified as "S" — would have been freed from captivity long before emergency responders pulled him out of a house fire on Feb. 17, 2025, his lawyer contends.
S told responding officers he had been locked in the house for most of his life and intentionally set the fire to free himself, according to court records. They show the 32-year-old weighed less than 70 pounds when he was discovered.
Attorney Joel T. Faxon is representing S and his conservator.
"It is disappointing that the State attempts to dismiss S’s request to seek justice for DCF’s incompetence," he said in a statement to Connecticut Public. "It was impossible for S to seek legal accountability during his captivity as a child."
A person usually needs permission from the claims commissioner to file a suit against the state for injury or damages. Under state law, a claimant has one year from when the alleged injury or damage is discovered — or under reasonable care should have been discovered — to submit a claim.
The event can't have taken place more than three years prior to the claim, even if discovered later. The limitation is meant to protect the state from stale lawsuits.
If the time limitation has expired, the General Assembly can pass a special act allowing the claim to continue if there are compelling circumstances and the case serves the public interest.
Lawyers from the state attorney general's office argue the claim can't go forward because DCF's involvement with the family ceased around 2005.
"Thus, this claim, filed in 2026, more than twenty years later, is untimely, and the Claims Commissioner lacks subject matter jurisdiction over the claim," they wrote in a motion to dismiss filed in April.
Police allege the victim's stepmother, Kimberly Sullivan, kept her stepson captive in a small room that was locked from the outside from the time he was around 11. Sullivan has pleaded not guilty to charges of kidnapping and assault.
The victim told investigators his family pulled him out of school in fourth grade after school officials contacted authorities about his behavior, including eating food out of the garbage due to hunger.
DCF said previously that it lacked sufficient evidence to intervene, despite receiving numerous reports regarding the boy's wellbeing. According to the agency, staff assessed the home and observed whether food was available. An investigator also spoke with the child's pediatrician, who expressed no concerns.
Sullivan's lawyer could not be reached for comment regarding the pending legal claim against DCF. He previously criticized the agency for giving credence to the allegations leveled against Sullivan. Attorney Ioannis Kaloidis last year described the agency's public remarks as a "calculated maneuver" to shield itself from scrutiny. Kaloidis noted that DCF found no evidence of abuse or neglect, despite conducting multiple interviews with those involved.
DCF declined a request for comment on the pending claim.
The Office of the Child Advocate also declined to comment, as its own investigation into the case is still open.
"Our thoughts remain with the healing and recovery of S," reads a statement provided to Connecticut Public. "Upon its completion, the investigative report will include a comprehensive assessment of the systems that may have allowed this tragedy to occur, with recommendations to prevent similar outcomes."
Faxon said that if the state continues to push for dismissal, he plans to seek legislative approval to ensure S can seek justice if he chooses.
"The evidence reveals that DCF should have intervened to prevent the horrific, sustained, life-altering abuse he endured for two decades," he said. "The preliminary facts of this case are extraordinary and so too should be the State’s response."
Lawyers for the victim have requested that DCF hand over any documentation related to the family, including agency reports, internal investigations, names of people involved and medical and school records.
Separately, a hearing officer ordered DCF earlier this year to provide the Freedom of Information Commission with a copy of its draft report summarizing how it handled the case for in-camera review.
The FOIC will determine whether the agency must release the document in response to a request from Connecticut Public.
A lawyer for DCF testified previously that its bureau chief of continuous quality improvement was closely involved in a qualitative review of the Waterbury case. The agency last year completed a report examining any potential missteps by DCF workers who interacted with the victim's family, but the report remains an unfinished draft, she said.
