COLUMBUS, Ohio — A mother and her son have filed a lawsuit against a licensed social worker accused of having sex with her teenage client and the nonprofit organization that hired her as a counselor.
Columbus police arrested Payton Shires, 24, on Oct. 6 and charged her with four counts of unlawful sexual conduct with a minor. She’s accused of having sex with a 13-year-old boy who she was assigned to counsel and mentor through her former employer, the National Youth Advocate Program (NYAP).
The boy's mother called Columbus police on Sept. 27 after she found text messages between Shires and her son. Police found videos of Shires and the boy having sex and engaging in other sex acts on the teen’s phone. Shires also reportedly admitted to having sex with the teen on a three-way call between her, the boy’s mother, and detectives, according to court records.
Court records show police believe the sexual conduct happened in September in Franklin County, but the lawsuit alleges that the activity extends back to August and also happened in other municipalities in Ohio.
Shires was held on a $500,000 bond, which she posted on Oct. 12. She was rearrested on Oct. 26 after police say she came to the boy’s house armed with a gun, fired a shot, then held the weapon to her own head and threatened to kill herself. She was charged with two counts of intimidation of a crime victim and witness, discharging a firearm and inducing panic.
Shires’ social worker license is still listed as active in Ohio. She is being held without bond in Franklin County and has pleaded not guilty to all of the charges filed against her. 10TV requested comment from her on the lawsuit through the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office and her defense attorney but received no response before publication.
The mother and her son are requesting at least $50,000 in damages, alleging in the lawsuit that NYAP was negligent in hiring Shires because she wasn’t competent to perform her duties.
The lawsuit claims the teen’s mother reported Shires’ inappropriate conduct to a supervisor at NYAP in September and asked the organization to remove the social worker from her boy’s care. The lawsuit alleges that NYAP failed to remove Shires, allowing the sexual relationship to continue.
The lawsuit claims that the teen’s mother reported Shires’ inappropriate conduct to a supervisor at NYAP in September and asked for the social worker to be removed from her son’s care. It alleges that NYAP failed to remove Shires, which allowed the sexual relationship to continue.
10TV reached out to NYAP for comment on the lawsuit but received no response before publication.
“We think they dropped the ball in this case,” said John K Fitch, who is representing the mother and her child.