Suit: DSS placed girl with man who raped her

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) —

South Carolina couple is suing the state’s social services agency, claiming that their teenage daughter was negligently placed with a male neighbor and that she was repeatedly raped while in his care.

The federal lawsuit filed earlier this month in Charleston accuses the Department of Social Services of negligence in placing the girl with a man who wasn’t a relative and hadn’t been certified as a foster parent.

The girl’s lawyer says she is living with her parents again but is having difficulties trusting adults in positions of authority. The neighbor is currently facing child sexual assault charges that the girl’s lawyer says are related to her case, although she isn’t named in police papers.

An agency spokeswoman says DSS will respond to the allegations in court.