Congress unanimously passes $20 million compensation fund for Dozier School victims

Boys sent to the White House will soon be eligible to receive up to $20 million in compensation from the state of Florida for the abuse they suffered there, after a Senate vote. HB21.

The vote followed a unanimous House vote last week. The measure will then go to the governor. Ron DeSantis desk.

The Arthur G. Dozier School for Boys, located in Marianna, about an hour northwest of Tallahassee, opened in 1900 to house boys accused of minor offenses such as truancy to serious crimes such as murder. At the school, many boys were sexually and physically abused, sometimes resulting in death. The school did not close until 2011.

Since 2012, researchers at the University of South Florida have discovered human remains and 55 unmarked graves at the site. Since the discovery, as many as 400 men have spoken out about abuse at the school by administrators.

In 2017, the Florida Legislature publicly apologized to the victims, who called themselves the “White House Boys” after the structure on the property where much of the torture took place.

But now a compensation fund will be set up for victims who attended the school between 1940 and 1975.

“No matter how much money or compensation we have, it’s really not enough for what these children have endured,” the senator said. Darryl Rouson The Tampa Democrat who proposed the bill. “This bill is basically an urgent need to right the wrongs of the past.”

The Ministry of Justice plans to open a website and application form for victims to seek compensation.

Boys sent to Florida School for Boys in Okeechobee are also eligible. This school was opened in 1955 in view of overcrowding at Dodger School. Applications must be received by Dec. 31 and all victims would receive the same amount, although the amount is not specified in the bill.

The bill also allows the State Board of Education to award high school diplomas to victims who have not met graduation requirements.

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