"We will do whatever we can to ensure the safety of the public," Schmidt said.

A Circuit Court lawsuit alleges the man molested a 9-year-old boy while he was in a state-approved foster care home between February 1989 and July 1990. The boy had been placed in the home of the man's parents in Kihei.

The state Thursday agreed to pay the boy and his 19-year-old sister, Jennifer Medeiros, $337,500 each to settle their lawsuits in one of the largest settlements against the state foster care system.

Two men have been convicted of sexual assault against Medeiros while she was in foster care.

But the man who allegedly assaulted her brother has not been charged because the boy has not been in the proper mental state to testify in a criminal proceeding, said the boy's attorney, Francis T. O'Brien.

The man works with children in the county program that provides activities for students during the summer and other periods when school is not in session.

County Prosecutor Richard Bissen said the state was prepared to proceed with the case against the man but held back because of the boy's condition.

"Part of our job is not to revictimize the victim. This is not a win-at-all-cost proceeding," Bissen said. "You have to take into account the condition of the child and minor and that's always the overriding factor in every one of these."

Bissen said that in our culture, boys have great difficulty dealing with being sexually assaulted by a man and many are reluctant to talk about the sexual assault.

O'Brien said the boy, now 16 and undergoing medical and psychiatric treatment in a hospital, indicated the man struck him and sexually assaulted him several times.

O'Brien said the boy couldn't vocalize his responses and had to put them in writing.

Schmidt said county officials will review the allegations in the lawsuit to determine if there is a factual basis for them and take appropriate measures.

He said the county had to keep in mind the rights of individuals in civil service.