YDC criminal trial: Malavet's defense claims the then teenager wanted to make money

CONCORD, NH — The state's first criminal trial of Victor Malavet, an alleged perpetrator in the YDC scandal, began Monday in Merrimack Superior Court. His defense team declared his innocence and accused the then-15-year-old girl of trying to make money.

“Money changes everything,” said defense attorney Mariana Dominguez in her opening statement.

Natasha Maunsell claims Malavet, 62, abused her while he was working as a youth counselor at the Youth Detention Services Unit in Concord when she was in custody as a teenager.

Maunsell is also one of 1,300 other YDC survivors who have filed suit against the state for abuse they suffered as children.

Testimony began with retired YDC youth counselor Evelyn Clark Smith, who recalled complaints about Malavet's inappropriate behavior toward Maunsell, other staff and residents that she observed sometime in 2001.

According to Clark Smith, Malavet spent time alone with Maunsell at the facility, which was a violation of adult rules. Malavet was also observed eating lunch with Maunsell and, according to Clark Smith, engaging in prohibited contact with the teen. At one meal, he was observed hand-feeding the girl shrimp and she licking sauce off his fingers.

“You just don't do that at work, especially with children. It's disturbing behavior,” Clark Smith said.

Maunsell was also caught wearing thongs, Clark Smith said, an item of clothing not allowed at the facility. All of the girls were given clothing when they were brought in, including “granny panties,” Clark Smith said. Maunsell's personal clothing, including her thongs, was kept in the locked room. The clothing and other items were to be returned when the child was released.

Maunsell was caught wearing the thongs during regular searches, and Clark Smith said she was found taking her personal clothing out of the locked room when Malavet was on duty and had the keys.

Viviana Rosario, a teenage friend of Maunsell's in prison, testified that she saw the teenager and Malavet “making out” and “fondling” when they thought they were alone in different rooms of the facility.

“I knew it wasn’t right,” Rosario said.

Rosario said she was afraid that staff would retaliate if she expressed her opinion.

“I didn't want to say it. I was scared. They have a big impact on your life,” she said.

But after she reported what she saw, Rosario was targeted, she testified. She was subjected to strip searches and frisking, as well as other forms of discipline. Even more alarming, Malavet confronted and groped Rosario, she said. Then he forced her hand down his pants to his penis, she said.

“He said, 'You're just jealous of Natasha… you want some of this too,'” Rosario said.

Michael McGeehan, a state systems analyst who worked at YDC for years, recalled participating in an initial personnel investigation into allegations that Malavet was too close to Maunsell. The result was that Malavet was ordered to put more distance between himself and the children, McGeehan testified.

The purpose of the facility was to ensure the safety of children during their time in government care, but McGeehan testified that life inside the facility was characterized by children roaming freely around the building and having free access to pens, pencils and other items that could be turned into weapons.

“I wouldn’t call it safe,” McGeehan said.

After the investigation was completed, Malavet was transferred to the Youth Development Center in Manchester in 2002, but no criminal charges were filed against him at that time.

This article first appeared on InDepthNH.org and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.