Four people have alleged in a lawsuit that they were sexually abused decades ago while in Baltimore City’s foster care system.

The lawsuit against Baltimore City and Jewish Community Services says the city and nonprofit did not take action to prevent sexual abuse in a foster home, despite receiving reports that relatives of the foster parents had molested the children.

The case was enabled by Maryland’s Child Victims Act, which removed the statute of limitations on lawsuits alleging child sexual abuse. The children had been placed into foster care in the 1950s, and the abuse, the lawsuit says, took place throughout the 1960s.

Attorney Nathaniel Foote, who is representing the four former foster children, said that the defendants “turned a blind eye to blatant warning signs” and that the plaintiffs “have carried the weight of this betrayal” for decades.

The four children had been placed in the foster care of Alexander and Alice Spurrier, who are now dead and are accused of sexual abuse in the seven-page complaint filed Friday in Baltimore City Circuit Court. The lawsuit says that others within the household molested the four plaintiffs, and notes several occasions when the children had disclosed some form of sexual abuse, though little or no further action was taken.

At one point, one of the anonymous plaintiffs had screamed at Alice Spurrier that her son had raped the plaintiff, but the foster mother “denied this occurred and did not report it,” the lawsuit alleges. Two of the children had disclosed sexual issues to their Sunday school teacher, prompting a report to the foster care system, though no action was taken, according to the lawsuit. And at one point, one of the children’s biological mothers had allegedly told the city and JCS that the foster parents’ oldest son “has often tried to molest” her daughter.

In addition to the sexual abuse, the foster home had 10 children living in a rowhome at the same time, withheld food from the children and would “beat them with a rubber strap,” the lawsuit says.

The city’s law department said Monday that it would “review the complaint once it has been received and respond in the appropriate judicial forum.” Jewish Community Services, which is based in Northwest Baltimore, did not immediately return a request for comment.

Articles in The Baltimore Sun indicate that the Spurriers were involved with the organization then known as the Jewish Family and Children’s Service, which oversaw more than 20 foster parents during the 1960s. That group placed children in foster care and covered the cost of board as well as health care and other incidental expenses. It was notable for launching a similar foster program for older adults.

The city’s social services department and the organization “were responsible for the placement and supervision of” the children, the lawsuit says.

The family and children’s service, as well as other related social services organizations, eventually folded into Jewish Community Services in 2008. The organization no longer arranges foster care but still provides other services for youth and older adults.

The lawsuit comes as the state evaluates its current foster care system, where some children are housed in hotels. The practice came under the spotlight last year after one youth staying in a hotel in Baltimore County was accused of rape.

Have a news tip? Contact Dan Belson at dbelson@baltsun.com, on X as @DanBelson_ or on Signal as @danbels.62.