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A Connecticut Boys and Girls Club where six children were allegedly sexually abused more than 40 years ago failed to properly train its staff and lacked a reporting system for abuse, a Stamford Superior Court judge said on Friday.
If you have been a victim of sexual assault during your time at the Boys and Girls Club, you may be eligible to seek compensation. See if you are eligible to join a class action lawsuit today.
Judge John F. Kavanewsky said that the Greenwich Boys and Girls Club had a “very lax method of conducting its operations” during a pre-trial hearing for lawsuits filed by the men who are now in their 50s, according to the Greenwich Time.
The cases of abuse reportedly occurred during the 1970s and 1980s. The lawsuit alleges that Andrew Atkinson, a locker room supervisor, reportedly used his position to take advantage of younger children by bullying, raping, and physically assaulting the minors.
The six men had filed three lawsuits separately, but they have been consolidated to save time and resources due to the fact that similar witnesses and allegations are involved.
Atkinson, who was a teen himself at the time and has denied the allegations, has not been named as the defendant in any of the lawsuits.
Boys & Girls Club Victims Seek Damages
Philip Russell, the representing attorney for the six men, was seeking $19 million in damages, to be divided by the group. But on Friday Judge Kavanewsky set the potential damages at $4.5 million, while also ordering the club to provide details about its assets prior to the trial that is scheduled for summer. The amount includes damages to cover physical and mental injuries, as well as potential reduced income.
“The court finds that all of the plaintiffs will likely require some measure of mental health intervention for the rest of their lives,” Kavanewsky said. “And that’s not to even speak of the interventions they have had to date.”
In previous statements, representatives for the Boys & Girls Club of America have stated the importance of youth safety and protection, according to CT Post.
“Our commitment to young people, their safety, and well-being is unyielding,” the Boys & Girls Clubs of America said in a statement. “We must ensure that every child is heard, and that it is clear that there is no place in our organization for those that would want to harm them.”
The Boys & Girls Club of America has faced both civil and criminal allegations that its staff sexually abused children in its programs. Hearst Connecticut Media broke the Boys & Girls Club scandal when it published its investigation into hundreds of sexual abuse claims allegedly committed over a span of decades. Alleged victims and advocates contend that the organization did not do enough to protect children in its care.
In September, 2020, a Boys & Girls Club abuse lawsuit was filed by four male plaintiffs against a former employee of a New York Boys & Girls Club claiming that the man sexually abused boys in his care in the 1980s and early 1990s. In January, 2021, eight men were added to the lawsuit that was originally filed in September against the Boys & Girls Club of Northern Westchester in Kisco, N.Y.
This article is not legal advice. It is presented
for informational purposes only.
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