A judge has appointed a special master to determine whether there are grounds for a civil lawsuit for damages on behalf of Peter J. “Peter Boy” Kema, the little boy who disappeared in 1997 after suffering severe abuse.

Steve Lane, a private investigator, petitioned the court to serve as master in the case at the request of Peter Boy’s sister, Chauntelle Acol. Lane, who has experience as a court-appointed guardian, volunteered to serve without compensation.

According to the petition, Acol and her siblings want to find out whether there is a basis for a wrongful-death suit against the parties responsible for harming Peter Boy, who was 6 when he disappeared and is presumed dead.

The boy’s father, Peter J. Kema Sr., is awaiting trial on second-degree murder charges, and the child’s mother, Jaylin Kema, pleaded guilty to manslaughter last month, along with second-degree theft in connection with welfare fraud.

Although the Kemas might have little in financial assets, it is possible the state could be named as a defendant in a civil suit for damages over its handling of the child abuse case.

Family Court Circuit Judge Henry Nakamoto appointed Lane as master in an order signed Wednesday in Hilo. He also ordered the state Department of Human Services and Child Welfare Services to turn over all records and files related to Peter Boy and his siblings to the master for review. They will be kept confidential.

Lane can also subpoena documents and records from individuals and public or private entities as part of his investigation. He plans to wait for the outcome of the criminal proceedings before deciding whether civil proceedings should be pursued.

His appointment appears to be the first such case since Senior Family Court Judge R. Mark Browning implemented a protocol on special masters in December 2014 on behalf of youth involved in child protection cases. Lane hopes the case helps alert people to the potential for redress under the protocol.

“My real interest in this is that people know about this, all of those guardians ad litem, Family Court lawyers and social workers know that there is a mechanism now so that kids that suffer harm can get help,” he said.

“Prior to that, the most effective way for a foster child to get a lawyer in Hawaii was to steal a car,” he said. “Then they would be assigned a public defender. Of course, that wasn’t much help if they got hit by a car on the way to school.”

Shortly after Peter Boy was born on May 1, 1991, the state went to Family Court to protect him from physical abuse by one or both of his parents. He and his siblings were put in foster care with their maternal grandparents. In 1995 they were returned to their parents.

In an affidavit filed in court, Chauntelle Acol said all the children were abused by their father, and the problem resumed immediately after they were reunited.

“During our childhood we were all horribly physically abused by our father, Peter J. Kepa Kema, Sr.,” she wrote. “However, Peter Boy, the youngest, was abused the worst.”

In 1997 the child protection agency received a report that Peter Boy was being abused again and began investigating. Peter Kema Sr. said he had given his son to a woman on Oahu whose identity was never verified. The child has not been seen since.

The Family Court protocol implemented by Browning requires people involved in child protection cases to notify the court if they learn that a child has suffered a physical or psychological injury that could be grounds for a tort lawsuit.

The court would then consider whether to appoint an independent master to investigate the matter and, if the master recommends it, have an attorney appointed for the child.

“These children are not just the responsibility of the court, but they are our children in terms of community,” Browning said in an interview. “And part of that means that we make sure they are taken care of like we would want our children to be taken care of.”

“Certainly if our own biological child or children was injured in some sort of way that would call for some sort of legal remedy, we would as parents pursue that,” he added. “Foster youth deserve the same sort of protections that our own children have.”