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Posted: 5:24 PM- A Layton couple awarded just $2 for the wrongful removal of their son by Utah child welfare caseworkers are entitled to recover some of their attorney's fees and costs, a federal judge ruled on Tuesday.
U.S. District Judge Dale Kimball ordered the state to pay Connie and James Roska $27,768, which he said, "is equal to the amount of fees and costs to which they are entitled minus the costs to which the [state is] entitled."
The order comes after the Roskas' lawyer, Steven Russell, requested the state cover his legal fees of $536,000. In response, state attorneys filed a motion seeking payment of $4,174 in witness and court fees.
Kimball partially granted the Roskas' motion, but said they had a responsibility to weigh the risks of going to trial versus settling.
"The fact that some judges viewed that there was no case should have been a warning sign that jurors could feel the same way," wrote Kimball.
The Roskas sued three caseworkers at Utah's Division of Child and Family Services after a federal appeals court ruled the caseworkers violated Utah law and could be held personally liable for taking custody of the Roskas' 12-year-old son in 1999 without a warrant or court order. A federal jury awarded the Roskas $1 for each parent.
The state offered to settle with the Roskas three times: Once for $5,000, again for $100,000 and most recently for $200,000.
Connie Roska said Tuesday she wishes she could repay her attorney, but that money was never the object.
"We made a difference, we changed the laws and protected families and children," said Roska. "But I still haven't gotten my public apology."
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