A teen in foster care died after ear infection went untreated. His siblings are suing MO

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The siblings of a 15-year-old Missouri boy who died two years ago have filed a wrongful death lawsuit, alleging his foster family allowed an ear infection to go untreated, leading to his death from sepsis. The lawsuit contends both the foster parent and state social services were negligent.

The lawsuit, filed Nov. 7 in the Western District of Missouri, is seeking at least $75,000 in compensatory and punitive damages in a case an attorney for the plaintiffs called both “awful and heartbreaking.”

According to the lawsuit, Marcus Haynes was diagnosed with an ear infection on Sept. 8, 2021. His foster parent and the care provider “were ordered by Marcus’s doctor to return to the ER promptly if his condition worsened.”

The suit alleges that both failed to bring Marcus to a doctor or other medical care provider between Sept. 9 and Nov. 28, 2021.

On Nov. 29, EMS workers responded to a call from the foster parent.

According to the suit, the teenager was found lying on a bedroom floor, where he had defecated on himself. Paramedics tried to find a pulse and performed CPR for 30 minutes, court records show.

Paramedics transported Marcus to Research Medical Center, where doctors also tried to resuscitate him without success and pronounced him dead.

According to court documents, Marcus died from sepsis caused by an ear infection that had spread throughout his body.

‘Awful and heartbreaking’

According to the family’s lawyer, Kevin M. Carnie Jr., the case is the most “egregious” case of child abuse and neglect he has encountered.

“It’s one of the worst I’ve seen for a kid to be found the way he was. … The neglect is just awful and heartbreaking,” Carnie told The Star.

Carnie said he hopes the lawsuit will help shed light on a child care system that he contends is broken and ultimately failed Marcus.

The teen’s four surviving siblings, identified in court documents as Darius Jackson, Dylan Sago, Brianna Williams and Devin Jackson, filed their wrongful death lawsuit this month, two years after their brother’s death. Named as defendants in the suit are the Missouri Department of Social Services; the Missouri Alliance for Children and Families LLC; Alicia Dickerson, the teenager’s case manager; Antonio Clark, the foster parent; and Shakina Dawkins, the child’s respite care provider.

The siblings are seeking damages “for the harms and losses he has suffered, for his costs incurred herein, for attorneys’ fees, and for any further relief this Court deems just and proper.”

The suit alleges the Missouri Department of Social Services “knowingly placed Marcus with unfit foster parents,” and failed to ensure that Marcus was brought back to his doctor as they had been instructed when his ear infection worsened. All of these factors, according to the suit, contributed to his wrongful death.

An attorney for the plaintiffs said they will likely seek “way in excess” of the $75,000 currently listed in the suit for damages.

Under Missouri statute, “Survivorship damages incurred by the decedent before death, such as medical expenses and pain and suffering, are recoverable as part of wrongful death claim.”

The suit contends the Missouri Department of Social Services was negligent and had a responsibility “to safeguard his well-being because he was unable to do so himself.”

According to the lawsuit, both DSS and the Missouri Alliance for Children and Families “were responsible for selecting, hiring, training, and supervising Marcus’s caregivers and all entities responsible for ensuring his care.”

Reached by phone Thursday, a spokeswoman for the DSS declined comment on the lawsuit.

“The department doesn’t comment on pending litigation,” said Caitlyn Whaley, communications director.

A phone message left Friday for the Missouri Alliance for Children and Families was not returned.

This story was originally published November 20, 2023 at 6:00 AM.