Father sues New York City Administration for Children's Services after 4-year-old son's death, allegedly at the hands of mother's boyfriend
NEW YORK -- A child was killed last year, allegedly at the hands of his mother's boyfriend, and now the boy's father has filed a lawsuit against the city, alleging multiple failures that led to his death after a report was made about potential abuse.
Four-year-old Jace Eubanks was killed September 2021 at his mother's apartment in Brooklyn as his 5-year-old brother watched. His mother's boyfriend, 28-year-old Jerimiah Johnson, is behind bars for his death.
The cause of death was battered child syndrome with recent blunt force injuries to the torso.
"I miss his smile," said Jamal Eubanks, Jace's father. "Me and him used to play a lot with his dinosaurs ... He liked football. We used to play football, throw and catch around a lot. He used to draw a lot, too."
At the time of his death, Jace and his brother were in the custody of their mother, and Eubanks would visit a few times a month.
"During this period of time, did you know just how bad things were?" CBS2's Alice Gainer asked.
"I did not. I had no awareness of anything that was going on," Eubanks said.
Eubanks has filed a lawsuit against the city's Administration for Children's Services, noting his son's day care made a complaint that "Jace showed injuries and was a suspected child abuse victim."
He claims in the lawsuit, "The city allowed Jace and his brother to remain in the custody and care of a known violent child predator" despite ACS and the NYPD's Special Victims Bureau investigating and telling the children, "They would stop anyone, including Mr. Johnson from injuring them in the future."
"He had a healing fractures, and if ACS had simply taken him to a doctor where he could've been x-rayed when these injuries were seen, they would've known that he had skull fractures, that he had rib fractures and other injuries," said Derek Sells, Eubanks' attorney.
According to the lawsuit, Johnson "had a history of child abuse and, over the course of the previous four years, at least three reports of abusing children and committing acts of domestic violence."
ACS referred CBS2 to the city's law department. A spokesperson says, "What a tragic and senseless loss. We'll review the case and respond in the litigation."
"I just want some justice for my son," Eubanks said.
The lawsuit seeks damages, better training and a change to policies at ACS.
Eubanks' other son is in foster care now and he maintains a relationship with him.
Johnson is due back in court later in October.
The complaint also notes three other children in the ACS system were killed in the 30 days prior to Jace's death.
