A group of women say they were sexually abused in junior high school by a band director in a new lawsuit filed against the Anaheim Union High School District.

The complaint alleges that the abuse spanned decades, between 1973 and 1991, when band director Richard Elgas groomed and sexually abused the girls who were between the ages of 12 and 18 at the time. The plaintiffs say that officials at the Anaheim Union High School District knew or should have known that Elgas was a danger, but still allowed him to access children.

According to the lawsuit, Elgas engaged in years-long sex abuse of the girls, enabled by his position at the school to access children.

Elgas allegedly worked at Fremont Junior High School as a band teacher from 1973 to 1979 and then at Sycamore Junior High School between 1980 and 2003. In addition to the eight plaintiffs, the lawsuit alleges that Elgas carried on years-long sexual abuse of other students, both male and female.

The plaintiffs say that school officials were aware of the abuse. One plaintiff says that a school counselor witnessed Elgas putting his hand up the plaintiff’s shirt in 1978, but failed to stop the continued abuse of the plaintiff which allegedly occurred until 1983.

The continued abuse of this plaintiff allegedly resulted in three pregnancies. According to the complaint, Elgas forced the plaintiff to have two abortions, but she carried the third pregnancy to term.

The plaintiffs say they suffer from physical and psychological injuries from the abuse perpetrated by Elgas to this day. They accuse the school district of failing to protect them and enabling a sex abuser to access young students to perpetrate abuse for decades.

A lawyer representing the plaintiffs told the LA Times that this lawsuit is “just the tip of the iceberg.”

“He’s gone through generations of young women, and the district did nothing to protect these students,” the lawyer told reporters. “These eight women deserve to be vindicated. For so long, he was treated like this venerated figure.”

Indeed, according to the plaintiffs, Elgas sexually harassed numerous students while working as a band teacher at the junior high schools. However, the lawsuit alleges that school officials never warned students about the danger posed by Elgas.

Other Sex Abusers Work for Anaheim Schools

According to the lawsuit, Elgas is not the only teacher in the school district to get away with the sexual abuse of minor students. The complaint points out a series of sexual assaults and molestations that occurred within the district.

A Lexington Junior High School teacher named Clifford Scofield was allegedly convicted of molesting a 13-year-old student in 1983. In addition, Katella High School band director Alex Delao was convicted of child molestation for events that occurred in 1984. Further, in 1985 another band director at Western High School named Jeffery Plum faced multiple felony charges and misdemeanor criminal charges for allegedly sexually assaulting two band students. Finally, another Sycamore Junior High School teacher named David Bruce faced criminal charges for molesting five of his students; however, Bruce committed suicide during his trial.

“During the time period that Elgas worked for [the school district], it was well known and/or should have been known to [the school district] that pedophiles and sexual predators had infiltrated and were commonly employed at the schools under their direct control and supervision,” alleges the lawsuit. “At no point did [the school district] warn or advise the students of the schools under their direct control and supervision of the danger that these predators, including Elgas, posed to them.”

Sex Abuser Well-Known Band Director

News Break reports that Elgas was a renowned band director in Orange County. He reportedly took the Sycamore Junior High Band to give concerts at Knott’s Berry Farm and as the opening act for the Los Angeles Philharmonic. In addition, the band played under Cal State Fullerton college conductors.

The plaintiffs say that Elgas’s reputation as a band director led school officials to cover up his proclivities.

“Defendants actively concealed and covered up Elgas’ past and on-going sexual abuse of children,” states the lawsuit. “Elgas was considered to be a respected and prominent figure in the ‘Band’ community of Orange County. Employees of [the school district] actively and negligently failed to protect the students in their care from Richard Elgas due to the prominence and attention that he brought to their band programs.”

According to the LA Times, criminal charges were never filed against Elgas. My News LA reports that Elgas retired in 2003 after a four-decade career in schools and died in 2017.

This article is not legal advice. It is presented
for informational purposes only.