An Ohio abuse survivor has been awarded $24 million in damages after child protection workers failed to formally investigate repeated reports of abuse, according to court records.
Serah Bellar, of Ohio, survived years of sexual abuse inside her family’s home, court documents state.
Bellar said she tried to tell the very people who were supposed to protect her.
Between 2017 and 2020, Athens County Children Services received at least three reports of sexual abuse involving the Bellar home, court records show.
None of those reports resulted in a formal investigation, according to records.
Athens County Prosecutor Keller Blackburn later described the handling of the allegations as an “absolute systematic failure.” Yet child welfare officials never formally probed the complaints, according to court documents.
The survivor eventually sued Athens County, court records show.
In her lawsuit, Bellar alleged that a Children Services caseworker was a close personal friend of her mother and helped cover up the abuse.
In 2023, Athens County and former sheriff’s deputy Jimmy Childs reached a $420,000 settlement with Bellar, according to court records.
The county admitted no wrongdoing under the terms of the agreement. The allegations against the county remained disputed under the settlement, records show.
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Meanwhile, multiple members of Bellar’s family faced criminal consequences, according to court filings.
Her parents, Robert and Deborah Bellar, pleaded guilty to engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity and endangering children, court records show.
Two of the survivor’s brothers also pleaded guilty to criminal charges, according to the record.
Childs was separately charged after investigators said he deleted a recorded call and provided false information during the investigation.
This week, a federal judge awarded Bellar $24 million in damages against her uncle, James Bellar, according to court records.
The federal damages award also ran against Dove Outreach, according to the court ruling.
Bellar accused the church in her lawsuit of being involved in a “cult-like” operation that promoted abuse.
The owner of Dove Outreach has declared bankruptcy, according to court records.
Years later, the survivor was the one who had to fight through criminal and civil courts for accountability, the record shows.
Despite the prosecutor publicly describing a systemic failure, no Children Services caseworker or administrator has been publicly reported as fired, disciplined or criminally charged in connection with the case.
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