In July 2013, the plaintiff, a 16-year-old ward in the Barry J. Nidorf Juvenile Hall, in Sylmar, told his therapist that probation staff had disclosed his charges to other wards. The teenager had previously been charged with a sex-related offense. He claimed that probation officers ridiculed him about the charges and told other wards at the facility about the charges. As a result, the teenager told his therapist that he was afraid of being attacked because probation staff had disclosed his charges to other wards. Over the next couple of weeks, the teenager was allegedly threatened by other wards. As a result, he allegedly reported the threats to probation staff. However, on July 23, 2013, the teenager was struck several times in the head by an older juvenile. The probation staff then took the teenager to the infirmary, where he was examined by a nurse and a doctor. However, the medical staff was unaware the teenager had bleeding in his brain and returned him to his living quarters, where a supervisor later found him unconscious. The teenager was then taken to a hospital, where it was determined that he had suffered a brain injury. Orlanda Cruz, acting as the 16-year-old ward’s guardian ad litem, sued the operator of the facility, Jerry Powers; the Los Angeles County chief probation officer, Officer Martinez; probation officers who worked at the facility, Officer Walker, Officer Johnson and Officer Woo; the officers’ employer, the county of Los Angeles; and the plaintiff’s counselor, Leah Rubke, who was an employee of a third-party contractor that was hired by the county to provide counseling to the wards at Barry J. Nidorf Juvenile Hall. Cruz alleged that the defendants violated the teenager’s civil rights by failing to protect him and being indifferent to his medical needs. The teenage plaintiff claimed that probation officers ridiculed him about being charged with sex-related offense and told other wards at the facility about the charges. He also claimed that when other wards began threatening him, he reported the threats to probation staff, but that the staff did not separate him, move him to a different facility, provide him adequate supervision, or take other steps to avoid a confrontation. He claimed that as a result, he was struck several times in the head by an older juvenile who learned of his charges. Plaintiff’s counsel contended that sex offenders are often kept in protected areas in jails and other corrective settings, as they can be targets of violence by other inmates. Counsel also contended that probation staff knew, or should have known, of the foreseeable risk of harm that would result to the plaintiff once his delinquency offense was made known to other wards, some who were violent, and that the plaintiff suffered a risk of being assaulted after the disclosures were made. In addition, plaintiff’s counsel asserted that the defendants failed to provide appropriate medical attention and should have transported the plaintiff sooner for care. Defense counsel contended that the plaintiff instigated a fist fight and that the probation staff immediately stopped it. Counsel also contended that there were numerous witnesses who saw the plaintiff walk up behind another juvenile and begin to swing punches at him. The other juvenile then turned around and started swinging at the plaintiff, thereby striking him in the head twice. Defense counsel further contended that after the incident, the probation staff appropriate took the plaintiff to the infirmary to be examined by a nurse and a doctor., The plaintiff sustained blunt force trauma to his head, and he complained of an earache and headache after the incident. He was subsequently taken to the medical unit, where he was evaluated by a nurse and a doctor, and then returned to his living quarters. A supervisor later found the plaintiff unconscious and unresponsive. As a result, emergency services were summoned and it was determined that the plaintiff was in a coma. He was then transported to a hospital, where he was diagnosed with a severe traumatic brain injury and bleeding into the brain. He subsequently underwent surgery, but he was allegedly left with severe neurological damage and suffers from paralysis. The plaintiff is now a quadriplegic with limited use of his right hand. He remains impaired and is unable to speak or walk. He is now confined to a wheelchair, needs around-the-clock care, and is unable to perform the daily activities of everyday life.