Partner Todd Mathews Speaks Out in Chicago Tribune on Harrisburg Juvenile Abuse Claims

MEDIA REQUESTS: To schedule an interview with counsel or for other media inquiries, please contact: Joe Carey at joe@careystrategiccommunications.com.

Bailey & Glasser, LLP partner D. Todd Mathews was interviewed by the Chicago Tribune in connection with their recent editorial titled, "Alleged Sexual Abuse at Downstate Juvenile Detention Center Cries Out for Criminal Investigation." The piece calls for urgent attention to the disturbing allegations of sexual and physical abuse at the Harrisburg Juvenile Detention Center in southern Illinois, and the failure of state and local officials to adequately investigate these claims.

The editorial emphasizes the serious nature of the accusations and warns against the danger of public forgetfulness and institutional inaction. Among those accused is Rocky James, a former detention center staff member who now serves as the mayor of Eldorado, Illinois. James has denied the allegations, dismissing the 15 accusers who were youth formerly held at the facility as “ex-convicts [who] are … just trying to get money.”

In the article, Bailey Glasser partner Todd Mathews, one of the attorneys representing the survivors in civil litigation related to the abuse, strongly rebuts that characterization. “Children are not convicts, they’re residents of the youth facility, and they’re in the custody of the state for care and rehabilitation,” Mathews told the Tribune.

Todd Mathews is a nationally recognized advocate for survivors of childhood sexual abuse and leads Bailey Glasser’s litigation efforts on behalf of survivors of childhood sexual abuse abused in juvenile facilities across Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, and beyond. These cases, filed under newly expanded statutes of limitations, have called for accountability and have drawn national attention for exposing long-standing patterns of abuse, institutional cover-ups, and systemic failure to protect children in state custody.

In Illinois alone, Bailey Glasser, along with co-counsel, represents more than 900 survivors in lawsuits against the state and its juvenile justice agencies. The complaints allege that children—some as young as seven—were sexually abused by staff members and silenced through threats or bribes. Despite years of red flags, officials allegedly failed to act, allowing the abuse to persist.

In addition to Todd Mathews, the firm’s legal team fighting for justice for these survivors includes founding partner Brian Glasser, Mass Torts Practice Group Leader David Selby II, Institutional Abuse & Neglect team leader Sharon Iskra, Of Counsel lawyer Aliya Khalidi, and attorney Samira Bode.

Learn more about our Juvenile Detention Center cases here. 

Read the full Chicago Tribune editorial here.