Foster Parents Win Suit Against DSHS

A jury yesterday awarded two former Mukilteo foster parents $150,000 for emotional distress they said they suffered in their dealings with the state Department of Social and Health Services.

The couple, Cindra and Alan Zugel, sued the department in Snohomish County Superior Court, saying DSHS staff members retaliated against them - including thwarting their attempts to adopt a child - after Cindra Zugel complained about insufficient care for foster children.

Kathy Spears, DSHS spokeswoman, said the department is studying whether to appeal.

Soon after the Zugels became foster parents in 1990, Cindra Zugel expressed concerns about the program and took her worries to DSHS staffers and state legislators.

"There is not more to it: I spoke out, I was passionate about the way I felt, and they (DSHS staffers) came after me with a vengeance," she said this morning.

After a few months, the Zugels stopped speaking out, but said the retaliation continued.

The jury found that DSHS had inflicted emotional distress on the Zugels, but the couple did not prevail in their claim that their civil rights had been intentionally violated.

Peggy Sedivy, a DSHS caseworker for 21 years, resigned due to the Zugels' case.

In court documents, Sedivy said DSHS workers became "openly hostile" to the Zugels after they began raising questions about the program.

Among other complaints, Cindra Zugel thought infants were hopscotched from family to family. She and Sedivy also said that in one instance, a DSHS caseworker brought a parent with a criminal record to the Zugels' house, in violation of department confidentiality policies for foster parents.

The Zugels also said that DSHS interfered in 1992 when they tried to adopt a child through a private agency. "DSHS found out about it, threatened them (the adoption agency), and stopped the adoption," Cindra Zugel said.

In 1995, they adopted a son.

The couple said DSHS also put restrictions on their foster-parent license that essentially kept them from getting mroe foster children.

Their lawyer, Mark Leemon, said, "These caseworkers have a lot of power. They basically do not want their authority challenged."

When asked if they would renew their license as foster parents, Alan Zugel said, "No, I don't think so." Seattle Times staff reporter Nancy Bartley contributed to this story.