Suit: Employee of Lake Villa group home sexually assaulted girl

A Lake Villa organization focused on the care and treatment of troubled children is facing accusations that one of its employees sexually assaulted a young girl.

Joann Martin, as friend of T.T., a minor, filed a lawsuit June 16 in the Cook County Circuit Court against The Allendale Association, alleging negligence and willful and wanton misconduct.

According to the suit, T.T. was removed from the home of her biological father and placed into a group home for girls owned and operated by the defendant at 600 Grand Ave. in Lake Villa, where she lived from June 2012 until January.

Martin claims Kelvin Perry, an employee of the defendant, sexually assaulted T.T. and was later arrested for the misconduct.

She accuses The Allendale Association of allowing T.T. to spend unsupervised time alone with Perry, failing to provide T.T. with counseling services to deal with her past sexual abuse, failing to observe clear signs that Perry committed sexual misconduct against T.T. and not conducting a proper background check on Perry before hiring him.

Martin is seeking damages in excess of $50,000 and court costs. She is being represented in the case by attorneys at The Detatany Firm in Chicago.

Cook County Circuit Court Case No. 2014L006412.

This is a report on a civil lawsuit filed in the Cook County Circuit Court. The details in this report come from an original complaint filed by a plaintiff. Please note, a complaint represents an accusation by a private individual, not the government. It is not an indication of guilt, and it only represents one side of the story.