$5 Million Settlement for Infant Lead Poisoning in Foster Care

A foster care agency placed an infant in a home riddled with lead paint, ignored alarming blood test results, and left him there while the home was being renovated. The Orlow Firm recovered $5 million to secure the child's lifelong care needs.

Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

The Situation

The child was not yet a year old when he was placed into a foster home in Brooklyn by the agency responsible for his care. He was at the stage where he was learning to crawl, then walk — putting everything into his mouth, as infants do. His mother, just sixteen years old, had been removed from an abusive household and placed under the agency's supervision along with her children. The oldest sibling was terminally ill with cancer and would pass away the following year.

The agency was supposed to protect these children. Instead, it placed them in a home that contained lead paint.

What Went Wrong

The child's first blood test on August 16, 1999 revealed a blood lead level of 32 — more than six times the level the CDC considers dangerous for children. The New York City Department of Health inspected the foster home and found lead paint in 29 separate locations throughout the residence.

What happened next defies comprehension.

Despite knowing the home was contaminated, the agency did not remove the child. Despite knowing his blood lead level was 32, the agency did not remove the child. Despite knowing the foster mother was in the middle of a home renovation — including painting — while an infant with documented lead poisoning remained in the home, the agency still did not remove the child.

They left him there for another month.

It was only when a second blood test on September 16, 1999 came back at 54.6 — nearly eleven times the danger threshold — that the Department of Health contacted the foster mother and insisted the child be removed the next day. He was rushed to a Brooklyn hospital for emergency treatment.

The Consequences

At the hospital, the child was immediately placed on chelation therapy — an aggressive treatment to remove lead from the bloodstream. He developed a high fever and the chelation had to be stopped. An FEP test returned a result of 130, indicating not just acute exposure but sustained poisoning over a period well exceeding 30 days. The hospital held him for six days and refused to release him until the agency found a lead-free placement.

The damage was devastating and permanent. In the fifteen years following the exposure, the child required continuous treatment for severe developmental disorders. He was diagnosed with severe ADHD and an impulsivity disorder. He suffered substantial cognitive delays. At times he became violent, attacking siblings and classmates, and banging his own head against walls. He was hospitalized seven times due to behavioral and violent episodes. Placed in special education classes, he was functioning at a third-grade level at seventeen years old.

Dr. Richard Schuster, a vocational rehabilitation expert, determined that even without the lead exposure, the child's background would have limited him to unskilled or semi-skilled work with an earning potential of approximately $36,327 per year. But the lead poisoning eliminated even that. The child is excluded from the competitive job market entirely.

Given his cognitive limitations, learning difficulties, behavioral disorder, and psychiatric conditions, experts concluded it is improbable the child will ever live independently. He will require a supervised residence and a guardian for the rest of his life.

How We Fought

Adam Moses Orlow, Managing Partner of The Orlow Firm, pursued the case against the foster care agency and the City of New York. The firm retained vocational, medical, and economic experts to document the full scope of the child's injuries and quantify his lifetime care needs. At mediation, the firm presented a detailed evidentiary presentation documenting the agency's knowledge of the lead contamination, its failure to act, and the catastrophic consequences for the child.

The Result

The Orlow Firm recovered $5,000,000 for the child — funds to secure the supervised living arrangements, medical care, and support he will need for the rest of his life.

Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

If you or a loved one has experienced a similar situation, contact The Orlow Firm at (646) 647-3398 for a free consultation.