A judge has approved a $5.6 million settlement for Justyna Zubko-Valva, the mother of an 8-year-old boy who froze to death in his father's unheated garage. The decision marks the end of a protracted legal battle stemming from the January 2020 death of Thomas Valva.
Zubko-Valva will receive the majority of the $9 million settlement with Suffolk County. Initially, the settlement proposed that she would receive $2 million, while her two surviving sons would receive $4 million each, with attorneys taking $3 million. However, Zubko-Valva successfully petitioned for a larger share, arguing the funds were necessary for her children's care and education.
Under the finalized settlement, Thomas's surviving brothers, Anthony, 17, and Andrew, 13, will each receive trusts valued at just over $177,000. Zubko-Valva's attorneys will retain their $3 million share.
Thomas Valva's death in Suffolk County drew significant attention after it was revealed that he froze to death due to alleged abuse and neglect by his father, an NYPD officer, and his father's then-fiancée. The child was reportedly forced to sleep in sub-zero temperatures without a blanket in an unheated garage.
Zubko-Valva originally filed a $200 million lawsuit against Suffolk County in 2022. The suit alleged that county officials failed to protect her son despite repeated complaints of abuse and neglect reported by Thomas's teachers to the county's Child Protective Services. The lawsuit also implicated the judge who granted her former husband temporary shared custody of the children, alleging judicial error in removing the children from her care. Zubko-Valva had lost full custody after refusing a psychological evaluation during the custody dispute.
Thomas Valva's father, Michael Valva, and his former fiancée, Angela Pollina, were convicted of murder in the case and sentenced to 25 years to life in prison.