DOJ sues Texas-based nonprofit on allegations of sexual abuse, harassment of children

A lawsuit was filed Wednesday against Southwest Key Programs Inc. (Southwest Key), a Texas-based nonprofit, related to violations of the Fair Housing Act, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

AUSTIN (KXAN/Nexstar) — A U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) lawsuit accused a Texas-based nonprofit of violating the Fair Housing Act, alleging the nonprofit's employees sexually abused and harassed children in its care.

The DOJ said Southwest Key Programs Inc. (Southwest Key) owns shelters that provide temporary housing to unaccompanied children encountered at the U.S. border.

Southwest Key provided KXAN with a response to the lawsuit, writing "it does not present the accurate picture of the care and commitment our employees provide to the youth and children."

Southwest Key Programs’ primary focus is the safety, health, and well-being of each one of the children and youth we care for. We continue to review the complaint, and it does not present the accurate picture of the care and commitment our employees provide to the youth and children. We are in constant communication and continue to closely partner with the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR), as we have done so for the past two decades to ensure the children and youth entrusted to our care are safe with us during their short stay with Southwest Key.

Southwest Key Programs Inc. statement

Southwest Key operates 29 shelters, including four in Texas and others in Arizona and California, and according to the DOJ, Southwest Key was the largest housing provider for unaccompanied children in the U.S.

The lawsuit, which was filed Wednesday, alleged that, from 2015 through at least 2023, multiple Southwest Key employees put children in their care through severe or pervasive sexual harassment.

The DOJ said the harassment “included, among other things, sexual contact and inappropriate touching, solicitation of sex acts, solicitation of nude photos, entreaties for inappropriate relationships and sexual comments.”

According to the Justice Department, the complaint also said Southwest Key:

• Took insufficient action to prevent sexual harassment of the children in its care
• Failed to consistently follow federal requirements for preventing, detecting and reporting abuse
• Failed to take appropriate or sufficient action to protect the children in its care
• Discouraged children from disclosing sexual harassment in violation of federal requirements

The DOJ said it was seeking money to compensate the children harmed by the alleged harassment, in addition to other demands.

“Sexual harassment of children in residential shelters, where a child should be safe and secure, is abusive, dehumanizing and unlawful,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Sexual abuse of children is a crisis that we can’t ignore or turn a blind eye to. This lawsuit seeks relief for children who have been abused and harmed, and meaningful reforms to ensure no child in these shelters is ever subjected to sexual abuse again.”