A South Dakota woman is suing the State of Iowa for allegedly placing her in a foster home with a convict who sexually assaulted her.
Mikalla Starr Winkel, 20, of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, is suing the State of Iowa in Polk County District Court.
Winkel’s lawsuit alleges that early in her life, her biological parents struggled with substance abuse and addiction before separating in September 2006. In December 2006, she and her three siblings were allegedly removed from their mother’s care for 11 months, with Winkel’s mother regaining custody in October 2007.
Court records indicate that in February 2008, Winkel and her siblings were again removed from their mother’s care due to ongoing issues involving drug use and addiction. The records show that in April 2008, the Woodbury County Attorney’s Office filed a petition for termination of parental rights, which the court granted in October 2008, thereby transferring custody and guardianship to the state agency then known as the Iowa Department of Human Services.
The lawsuit alleges that before DHS placed Winkel in a foster home it was required by law to conduct a criminal background check on her prospective foster parents and show evidence that in selecting a foster home, it had considered the social and cultural standards of the Santee Sioux Nation, of which Winkel was a member.
In 2009, when Winkel was 4 years old, she and two of her siblings were placed in the foster home of Norman and Cammie Winkel of Sioux City – a couple who had no connection to the Santee Sioux Nation or any other Native American community.
According to the lawsuit, at the time of the foster-home placement Norman Winkel was a former prison inmate who “had an extensive drug-related criminal history with five drug convictions, including a felony for which he received a 25-year prison sentence.”
In 2010, Winkel was legally adopted by the couple. The lawsuit alleges that while Mikalla lived in the home, Norman Winkel “began to exhibit grooming behaviors toward Mikalla,” and then, as she matured, the “grooming escalated to sexual assault, including fondling, mutual touching, and sexual assault in the foster home.” The alleged sexual abuse “continued for multiple years,” according to the lawsuit.
In 2018, at the age of 13, Winkel allegedly reported the abuse to the Mercy Child Advocacy Center in Sioux City, triggering a DHS investigation that allegedly concluded with a determination that the allegations of abuse were founded.
“Upon the sexual abuse finding, Norman Winkel absconded and remains at large,” the lawsuit states. “As a result of the years of abuse, Mikalla suffered severe mental health issues.”
Court records indicate Norman Winkel has never faced criminal charges of sexual abuse or assault. Iowa Capital Dispatch was unable to reach him.
According to the lawsuit, Cammie Winkel’s custodial rights were terminated in 2020 when Mikalla Winkel was 15. In May 2024, the lawsuit alleges, the State of Iowa denied Mikalla’s claim for damages against the state, leading to the lawsuit recently filed on her behalf.
The lawsuit alleges DHS, now known as the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services, is guilty of negligence in that the agency failed to properly conduct a background check on Norman Winkel before placing Mikalla and her siblings in his care and that the agency failed to consider the full extent of his “lengthy criminal history.”
The lawsuit also alleges negligence stemming from DHS’ purported failure to consider whether the Winkels’ home would accommodate the social and cultural needs related to Mikalla’s Native American heritage.
The State of Iowa has yet to file a response to the lawsuit. The Iowa Attorney General’s Office says it does not comment on pending litigation.
