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METRO PAGE 2 Reporter Matthew Franck E-mail: mfranck@post-dispatch.com Phone: 573-635-6178
A court ruling in favor of Heartland Christian Academy could open the floodgates to dozens of lawsuits by parents who say their children were traumatized by a raid at the teen reform ministry three years ago.
U.S. District Judge E. Richard Webber ruled earlier this month in a suit filed by the academy that state juvenile officers violated the ministry's constitutional rights when it removed 115 students from the northeast Missouri school in October 2001 amid abuse investigations. The ruling also bars future raids without a proper hearing, and praises Heartland as an asset to the state.
Heartland did not seek monetary damages in its suit. But lawyers for the ministry said Wednesday that 25 to 30 parents may now seek compensation.
"The real horror stories have not been told in court...