A man was awarded $33 million by a jury in San Bernardino County for failure to report neglect of a child by several deputy sheriffs and a welfare fraud investigator, which the jury found was a “substantial factor” in the child being sexually abused by a former deputy sheriff from the time he was 14-17 years old, according to an announcement late last week.
The unidentified child abuse survivor was taken in by former San Bernardino County Deputy Sheriff Jeremie Cox, a 25-year veteran of the department, when the child was around 13 or 14.
Cox, according to a news release from the victim’s attorneys, first met the boy around 2012.
Over the next year and a half, the deputy reportedly befriended the boy, allowing him to eat, play video games and watch shows at his house. He even began taking the teen on camping trips and hikes.
During that time, the victim’s attorneys say Deputy Cox learned that the child’s mother was neglecting him and leaving him alone for long bouts and not feeding him proper food, as well as likely abusing drugs.
“Deputy Cox considered, but decided against, filing a child neglect report because he did not want the child to go into foster care,” the release stated. “Instead of reporting the neglect of the child by his mother to CPS, Deputy Cox chose to communicate with the child’s mother directly and arranged to have the child move into Deputy Cox’s home.”
Over the next three years, lawyers say Cox sexually abused the teen.
The deputy also began involving the victim in the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s community, bringing him to department workspaces, the courthouse, arranging for ride-alongs with other deputies.
Eventually, the teen reported his mother to the county’s welfare fraud investigation unit because she continued to receive welfare funds to care for him but had not done so in three years. His mother was later charged, convicted and jailed for welfare fraud.
After finally being able to move out of the deputy’s home, the victim, who was around 21 years old at the time reported the sexual abuse to authorities.
Cox, who was 50 at the time of his arrest, living in Yucca Valley, was taken into custody on Sept. 17, 2021, while he was on duty. He later entered a plea and was sentenced to prison in California.
The victim’s civil trial against San Bernardino County began on Aug. 26 of this year and lasted four weeks, with the verdict returned on Sept. 23.
Even though he reportedly suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder and agoraphobia, the victim testified at the trial.
“This is believed to be the largest reported verdict for failure to report child neglect by mandated reporters, and is also believed to be the largest reported verdict related to failure of a law enforcement agency employees to report child neglect that resulted in subsequent child sexual abuse by a member of the same law enforcement agency whose employees failed to report the preceding child neglect,” the release stated.
In response to KTLA’s request for comment, San Bernardino County Public Information Officer Gloria Huerta said, “We are not providing statements at this time as appeals may be filed.”