He Survived the Abusive Home Where His Sister Was Starved to Death. Now the State Is Paying for Its Failures

• Sabrina Ray, a 16-year-old girl, died of severe malnutrition at the hands of her adopted parents in 2017
• The Iowa Department of Health and Human Services has agreed to pay over $14 million in settlements to Sabrina’s siblings and other children abused in the parents’ home
• DHS is now required to improve training for identifying child neglect and malnutrition

An adopted sibling of Sabrina Ray, the 16-year-old who was starved to death in her foster parents’ home, weighing only 56 lbs. when she died in 2017, will receive more than $4 million from the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services.

Sabrina was adopted by Marc Ray and Misty Jo Bousman-Ray, an Iowa couple who took in 23 foster children over the course of a decade and ran an in-home daycare center for 13 years, called “Rays of Sunshine,” but were later found to have subjected their children to horrific neglect and abuse, according to a lengthy report by the state ombudsman. 

On the day Sabrina was found dead by police, Marc and Misty were on the way to Disney World with her adoptive brothers, the report said. She was found just before 6:30 p.m. on May 12, 2017, by two Perry Police officers. 

Officer Josh Sienkiewicz described what he saw as “the most horrific scene in my entire career and life,” according to the report. Sabrina was found lying on a small mattress on the floor wearing a diaper and tank-top. Officer Sienkiewicz said that her body was “nearly withered out of existence,” as the 16-year-old was 56 lbs. and 4 feet, 7 ½ inches tall. 

Sabrina’s mother, Misty, was ultimately sentenced to life plus 20 years in prison and the father, Marc, was sentenced to 80 years, according to the ombudsman’s report. Carla Bousman, Sabrina’s grandmother, received a 20-year sentence while Josie Bousman, the cousin, was sentenced to 14 years and Sabrina’s brother, Justin Ray, received a 10 year sentence. 

The report found that DHS had failed to properly address numerous reports of abuse against the Rays. Witnesses said the Rays had allies within DHS and the city of Perry, where there were not many daycare centers. The report also said that caseworker records were inaccurate and not thorough enough, which led to workers failing to identify patterns of abuse.

DHS agreed in 2023 to settle claims by Sabrina’s two younger siblings for $10 million, the Des Moines Register previously reported. This $4 million settlement will go to a third child in the home who authorities say witnessed and suffered abuse resulting in physical and emotional injuries. 

The state also paid $500,000 in 2022 to a 10-year-old who was in the daycare the Rays ran out of their home, according to the outlet. The child was reportedly kicked and denied food by the couple. 

An attorney who represented all the children in their complaints against the state, Scott Wadding, told the Des Moines Register that the settlements require DHS to train investigators in recognizing malnutrition and neglect. 

“This case is a small step in the right direction to help keep our children safe,” Wadding said, whose firm is donating $300,000 to the Children’s Rights Clinic at Drake Law School.

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The settlement was approved Tuesday but there’s still ongoing litigation against the Rays, the outlet reported. Two of the children are using Mid-Iowa Family Therapy Clinic, which they say while contracted by the state to provide services to the foster children in the Rays’ home, ignored and suppressed warnings that they were being abused. 

The clinic has denied wrongdoings in court filings, the outlet reported, and the case is still pending. 

If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.