Mother of boy raped by social worker sues youth program over sex abuse

The mother of a teenage boy who was allegedly raped by Ohio social worker, Payton Shires, is suing the agency on claims that they allowed the abuse to continue after she had reported it.

The victim's mother, who has not been publicly identified, alleges that The National Youth Advocate Program ignored her allegations that Shires had an inappropriate sexual relationship with her 13-year-old son. She is seeking $50,000 in damages, according to Daily Mail.

Payton Shires, 24, of Mount Sterling, was charged with unlawful sexual conduct with a minor on Oct. 6. She allegedly admitted to the sexual abuse during a phone call with the boy's mom and Columbus detectives. Police reportedly found a video of Shires having sexual intercourse with the teen on video that had been deleted, the outlet reports.

Shires posted bail but was rearrested shortly afterward when she went to the victim's family home and pointed a firearm at her head, threatening to kill both herself and the boy's mother, according to the outlet. Shires allegedly told the victim's mom that she had "ruined her life."

The mother says that the organization had the authority to remove Shires as his counselor when she first complained. The complaints followed alleged sexually explicit text messages the mother had found on her son's cellphone.

"We think they dropped the ball in this case," the mother's attorney said.

Furthermore, Shires's fiance, Nicholas Rafter, also has a criminal history and spent time in prison on suspicion of child endangerment charges.