By HOLLY RAMER (Associated Press)
BRENTWOOD, N.H. (AP) — A New Hampshire jury has given $38 million to the man who exposed abuse claims at the state’s youth detention center, in a historic case concluding the state's negligence allowed him to be physically and sexually assaulted and kept in isolation as a teenager.
The state stated that the amount will be lowered to $475,000 according to its law that limits damages.
David Meehan reported to the police in 2017 and sued the state three years later. Since then, 11 former state employees have been arrested and over 1,100 other former residents of the Youth Development Center in Manchester have initiated legal action alleging physical, sexual and emotional abuse spanning six decades.
Jurors in Meehan’s case were instructed that if they believed the state was responsible for Meehan’s injuries, they should determine a sum that represented “full, fair and adequate” compensation. They gave $18 million in compensatory damages and $20 million in “enhanced” damages, which can be added if a defendant acted with reckless indifference or abused its power. However, they also stated that Meehan had only proven one “incident” or episode in which he was injured without being aware that New Hampshire’s law allows claimants against the state to receive a maximum of $475,000 per reported incident.
“The jury did find in favor of Mr. Meehan for $38 million but they found only one incident of negligence against the Department of Health and Human Services,” stated Assistant Attorney General Brandon Chase. “Under state law Mr. Meehan has a judgement in his favor of $475,000.”
However, one of Meehan’s lawyers, Rus Rilee, stated that the matter will be resolved by the state Supreme Court on appeal.
“There seems to be some confusion on the jury verdict form but we’ll handle that in Concord,” he said. “The jury award is $38 million.”
Meehan’s case was the first to go to trial, and the outcome could impact the criminal cases, the remaining lawsuits, and a separate settlement fund the state created as an alternative to litigation.
During the four-week trial, the state argued that it was not responsible for the actions of “rogue” employees and that Meehan waited too long to sue. The defense also attempted to undermine his credibility and stated that his case relied on “conjecture and speculation with a lot of inuendo mixed in.”
“Conspiracy theories are not a substitute for actual evidence,” attorney Martha Gaythwaite stated in her closing statement Thursday.
Meehan’s lawyers accused the state of fostering a culture of abuse characterized by widespread brutality, corruption and a code of silence.
“They still don’t get it,” David Vicinanzo stated in his closing statement. “They don’t understand the power they had, they don’t understand how they abused their power and they don’t care.”
