Daughters of Murdered Pasadena Matron Sue County for Negligence

[Updated] The daughters of a murdered Pasadena foster mother have filed a wrongful death suit against the Los Angeles County’s Department of Children and Family Services.

The lawsuit alleges that department employees were negligent in revealing Douglas’ personal information to the alleged murder suspect, 42-year old Jean O’Connor. Plaintiffs are the victim’s daughters Lorie Hope and Tanya Juhasz, according to City News Service.

O’Connor had been deemed an unfit mother and her son was placed under Douglas’ care as a foster child. Apparently, Juhasz eventually adopted the boy. Later, O’Connor had a daughter that also became Douglas’ ward, according to the news report.

The lawsuit alleged that O’Connor called Douglas with information given to her by County employees, claiming she was from the department and needed to get some paperwork signed. Gaining access to Douglas’ home, O’Connor allegedly killed her.

Jeri Douglas was 75 years old when she was murdered on Dec. 17, 2018. O’Connor was arrested and later pleaded not guilty in Pasadena Superior Court.

Douglas’ daughters, Lorie Hope and Tanya Juhasz have filed a wrongful death suit against the county’s Department of Children and Family Services.

Through its communication department, the County issued a statement when asked for a response to the lawsuit:

“At any given time the department serve more than 34,000 families and vulnerable children in Los Angeles County with an unwavering commitment to pursue child safety every day in our communities; our 9,000 employees do not take this commitment lightly and look to do everything possible to safeguard the children in our care.”

All DCFS employees are held to the highest standards to ensure that the public trust is our service is honored and maintained. We cannot comment on any pending claim, litigation, or lawsuit involving the Department at this time.