More than 100 new accusers file child sex abuse lawsuits against Illinois juvenile detention centers

CHICAGO (CBS) -- Dozens more victims have come forward claiming they were sexually assaulted while in juvenile correction centers run by the state of Illinois and Cook County.

More than 100 new cases filed on Monday bring the total number to 800.

The accusers said the effects of the alleged abuse have been deep and long-lasting for these men and women.

They said they're choosing to speak out now, because they know they're not alone, and they don't want what they say they've experienced to happen to anyone else.

"I can't live. I feel like I'm just existing," said Marcus Walker, who spent time at Illinois Youth Center Harrisburg in downstate Illinois. "Prior to it, I had never been in handcuffs, never been in trouble. After that situation happened, I joined a gang in there ... thinking that was going to help me. It didn't."

Walker said he became the victim of systemic sexual abuse by a state employee who worked there.

"She gave me drugs and alcohol, and used her power to sexually abuse me," he said.

Walker said the abuse haunts him still today.

"Just kept going back and forth to prison, because I didn't know how to cope. I just came home July 7th of 2023. I'm still dealing with it. I had my first baby. He's 10 months old, and I deal with PTSD on a daily basis. I hardly get any sleep," Walker said.

He is one of 800 men and women who have filed similar complaints against the state and county over how they've handled sexual abuse in their juvenile detention facilities.

"I made mistakes to end up there, but no mistake could justify the way I was hurt and sexually abused by staff members there," said Charles Graves.

CBS News Chicago previously reported on hundreds of similar cases last year. Another 133 new cases were filed on Monday.

"The juvenile justice system promises rehabilitation, but instead for our clients the system was nothing more than a pipeline for suffering," said Kristen Feden, an attorney with Philadelphia-based law firm Anapol Weiss.

Attorneys for the victims said, by dismissing the cases, the state is defying the Illinois Childhood Sexual Abuse Act, which allows victims to seek justice within 20 years of the alleged crimes.

"The state is refusing to accept any responsibility in these cases," said attorney Jerome Block, a partner at New York-based Levy Konisberg LLP.

CBS News Chicago reached out to Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul's office, Gov. JB Pritzker's office, and Cook County leaders for a response, but has only heard back from the Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice, which said they're not able to comment on active litigation, but that all allegations of staff misconduct are investigated internally.

Attorneys for the victims said they weren't aware of any results of those investigations.