How Could You? Hall of Shame-Joe Albert Raygosa UPDATED now lawsuit

This will be an archive of heinous actions by those involved in child welfare, foster care and adoption. We forewarn you that these are deeply disturbing stories that may involve sex abuse, murder, kidnapping and other horrendous actions.

From Junction City, Oregon, foster parent Joe Albert Raygosa, 45, “and his family, including his wife and three biological children, abruptly moved from their rental home on Pine Court in Junction City last month after Eugene police questioned him about the sexual abuse allegations made by one of two former foster children.”

“Oregon State Police troopers are looking for a Junction City man accused of sexually abusing a foster child in his care, according to a search warrant affidavit filed last week in Lane County Circuit Court.”

“Raygosa had refused to talk to Eugene detectives in October, according to the affidavit, and police have not been able to reach him, his wife or their adult son since, because their phone numbers all have been disconnected.

A neighbor told police that she saw the family pack up and leave one early morning in late October.

The property manager told police that Raygosa called and left a message Nov. 6, saying the family had to leave for an emergency and did not know if they would be back. On the message, Raygosa allegedly told the property manager to keep his security deposit and apologized for the late notice.

The family left behind many of their belongings, the affidavit states.

State police Sgt. Kaipo Raiser confirmed Monday that state troopers have taken over the investigation.

The abuse allegedly occurred between July 2016 and July 2017, when the two foster children were placed into another foster home for an unrelated reason.

It was then that the foster child, a 10-year-old girl, confided in her new foster family about the alleged abuse.

The girl said Raygosa had touched her inappropriately and forced her to perform sexual acts and watch pornography on his cellphone, the affidavit states. The girl said Raygosa told her to blame the abuse on her biological father.

The girl was interviewed at Kids’ First Center and confided in an interviewer about each of the incidents that allegedly occurred with Raygosa, in which she said he would sometimes bribe her with candy. Raygosa told her to keep the abuse a secret, the affidavit states.

The affidavit, written by Eugene police detective Ben Hall, states that Raygosa is believed to have committed the crimes of first-degree rape, first-degree unlawful sexual penetration, first-degree sodomy and first-degree sexual abuse.

A warrant has not yet been issued for his arrest.

At the end of the girl’s Kids’ First interview, the child was briefly left alone in the interview room.

It was then, according to the affidavit, the little girl whispered to herself, “I feel brave.””
Junction City man accused of sexually abusing foster child, 10

[The Register Guard 11/21/17 by Chelsea Deffenbacher]

REFORM Puzzle Piece

Update: “After four months on the run, a Junction City man who disappeared with his family after being questioned last year about the sexual abuse of a foster child has been located in Oklahoma and brought back to Lane County to face charges.

Joe Albert Raygosa, 45, faces 12 felony counts related to the sexual abuse of a 10-year-old girl. The charges include two counts of first-degree rape, four counts of first-degree sexual abuse, four counts of first-degree sodomy and two counts of first-degree sexual penetration.

He was arrested on a warrant for those charges in Lawton, Okla., and extradited to Lane County on Sunday, according to Oregon State Police Lt. Cari Boyd.

The abuse allegedly occurred between July 2016 and July 2017, when two foster children were in Raygosa’s care. Both children later were placed in another foster home for an unrelated reason, and the 10-year-old girl confided in her new foster family about the alleged abuse, according to a search warrant affidavit filed in Lane County Circuit Court last November.

In October, Raygosa refused to talk to Eugene police detectives, the affidavit states. Then, Raygosa, his wife and their three biological children abruptly moved from their rental home on Pine Court in Junction City and disconnected their phone numbers, the affidavit states. They left most of their belongings behind.

Oregon State Police then took over the investigation.

The girl said Raygosa had touched her inappropriately and forced her to perform sexual acts and watch pornography on his cellphone, the affidavit states. The girl said Raygosa told her to blame the abuse on her biological father.

The girl was interviewed at Kids’ First Center and confided in an interviewer about each of the incidents that allegedly occurred with Raygosa, in which she said he would sometimes bribe her with candy. Raygosa told her to keep the abuse a secret, the affidavit states.

At the end of the girl’s Kids’ First interview, the child was briefly left alone in the interview room.

It was then, according to the affidavit, that the little girl whispered to herself, “I feel brave.”

In February, a Lane County grand jury indicted Raygosa on the charges. He has pleaded not guilty and is scheduled in court on April 16 for a hearing.”

Junction City foster dad, accused of sexually abusing 10-year-old, is arrested in Oklahoma

[The Register Guard 3/13/18 by Chelsea Deffenbacher]

Update 2:“A Lane County man found guilty of sexually abusing a child under the age of 12 has been sentenced to more than 93 years in prison.

The child was in the foster care of Joe Raygosa, 45, and his wife from June 2016 to July 2017.

Raygosa was accused of touching the child sexually, forcing himself on the child, taking naked pictures of the child and showing the child pornography.

Police said the abuse was reported after the child was moved to another foster home.”

Lane County man sentenced for sexually abusing a child

[KEZI.com 8/23/18]

Update 3:“A federal lawsuit filed in Eugene accuses the Oregon Department of Human Services and several of its employees of neglecting the abuse a young girl experienced at the hands of her foster parent, who was convicted of rape in 2018.

The lawsuit was filed by Ethan Levi on behalf of a girl under the age of 18. It seeks $20 million in damages from the defendants.

According to the lawsuit, the girl was 9 years old when she and her younger brother were placed in the foster care of Joe Albert Raygosa and his partner in July 2016.

Before becoming an authorized foster parent in Oregon, the lawsuit says Raygosa and his partner had lived in Fresno, Calif. and were involved or questioned in the death of a 3-year-old girl.

After they moved to Oregon in 2015, Raygosa and his partner had tried to become certified foster parents through a Native American tribe but were not certified, the lawsuit said. It said ODHS did not look into why the couple was not approved for that foster parent program and that they had not received their required Structured Analysis Family Evaluation Home Study before ODHS placed the girl and her brother in their custody.

Raygosa, who was 44 at the time, was immediately infatuated with the 9-year-old girl, the lawsuit said. He asked the girl and her brother to call him and his partner “mom” and “dad” and discussed wanting to adopt the girl shortly after she arrived.

n August of 2016, Raygosa and his partner expressed concern for the boy and his behavior in their home. During an initial phone screening with ODHS, the lawsuit said the boy’s sister began to disclose possible sexual abuse by “dad.” The lawsuit accused ODHS of failing to make diligent attempts to follow up with the disclosure.

In the months that followed, the lawsuit said a medical provider contacted the DHS child abuse hotline to report that it appeared another boy and girl, who were reportedly relatives of Raygosa and lived with him at the time, had experienced medical neglect.

DHS assigned a worker to respond to the report, the lawsuit said, but the investigation dragged on for months and Raygosa and his partner were reluctant to cooperate and answer questions.

By November 2016, the boy Raygosa was fostering began showing signs of distress and neglect, the lawsuit said. He started wetting the bed, lying and threatening to commit suicide.

In January 2017, the girl Raygosa and his partner were fostering began showing signs of severe emotional distress and abuse, including eating problems and hair loss, the lawsuit said.

Other foster children who were placed in the home at the same time said they were beaten, according to the lawsuit. One said Raygosa beat him with a hanger while Raygosa’s partner sat in the living room and said nothing. ODHS staff described the children as “pretty banged up.”

Even after those foster children were removed, the girl who’s pursuing charges and her brother remained, the lawsuit said.

The boy and girl were removed from Raygosa’s home some time after June 2017, the lawsuit said. However, Raygosa and his partner still visited the children at the ODHS facility through October 2017.

At that time, the girl disclosed that Raygosa had repeated sexually abused her while she lived with him, the lawsuit said. After the girl accused him of this, Raygosa reportedly fled Oregon and was arrested in Oklahoma.

He was extradited to Oregon for trial. He was indicted in February 2018 of four counts of first-degree sexual abuse, two counts of first-degree unlawful sexual penetration, four counts of first-degree sodomy and two counts of first-degree rape. A jury found him guilty of all charges and he’s serving his sentence in the Oregon State Penitentiary.

Now, more than four years later, the girl is suing ODHS and its employees saying the agency failed to keep her safe in foster care and that employees did not thoroughly investigate Raygosa and his partner before allowing them to become foster parents in Oregon.

The lawsuit accuses employees of knowing Raygosa was infatuated with the girl, but failing to investigate his behavior and the reported sexual abuse. It also accuses them of knowing about the injuries suffered by other children in the home, and of knowing the home was unsafe, but still allowing the two foster children to stay.

The lawsuit is requesting a trial by jury.

KOIN 6 News requested a statement from ODHS, but the agency did not send a response before deadline.”

$20M lawsuit accuses Oregon DHS of neglecting abuse in foster home
[KOIN 11/24/22 by Amanda Arden]