Lawsuits claim 66 people were abused as children in Pennsylvania's juvenile facilities ( apnews.com )

Dozens of children suffered physical and sexual abuse including violent rapes inside juvenile detention centers and similar facilities in Pennsylvania, according to four related lawsuits filed Wednesday.

The lawsuits describe how 66 people, now adults, say they were victimized by guards, nurses, supervisors and others. Some attacks were reported to other staffers and were ignored or met with disbelief, the lawsuits allege.

Their claims point to a broken juvenile justice system, said Jerome Block, whose New York law firm has also pursued similar lawsuits in Illinois,Maryland, New Jersey and Michigan.