The family of Malinda Hoagland, a 12-year-old girl who was allegedly tortured and killed by her father and stepmother, has filed a lawsuit against several Pennsylvania state and county agencies alleging that the authorities severely let the child down.
Hoagland’s three half-sisters are reportedly seeking several million dollars in compensation from Chester County, Monroe County, and the Coatesville Area School District. The state of Pennsylvania is also named in the lawsuit which was filed on Wednesday. An additional lawsuit was also filed against Hoagland’s former school, the Commonwealth Charter Academy, which she attended up until her untimely death in May.
Attorneys representing the sisters say that multiple agencies are responsible for the young girl’s death by nature of their turning a blind eye to warning signs and red flags. While the criminal case is ongoing, this civil case is seeking enormous sums of money in damages, with lawyers arguing that Hoagland’s death represents massive system failures on many different levels.
Here’s What Happened to Malinda
Malinda Hoagland died in May, 2024, after enduring years of abuse and neglect by her father, Rendell Hoagland and his girlfriend, Cindy Warren. The couple have since been charged with murder and are facing a potential death sentence.
Investigators revealed earlier this year that the couple tortured and starved Malinda, and regularly beat her. When Malinda died, she weighed only 50lbs and was covered in bruises.
On May, 7, the Chester County District Attorney’s Office announced that 52-year-old Rendell Hoagland and 45-year-old Cindy Warren had been arrested.
What the Attorneys Say
Tom Bosworth, the attorney representing Malinda’s sisters and the Malinda Hoagland estate, described how the young girl’s condition should have indicated to adults around her that there were problems at home.
“Numerous complaints, numerous reports of physical abuse, black eyes, injuries, stuff that doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out and zero, zero visits to the home by Chester County Children and Youth, not one time,” Bosworth said.
It’s hard to imagine that, in the face of all that evidence, that nobody in a position of authority thought to check in on her…isn’t it?
