Two former patients have filed a Rockefeller University Hospital sex abuse lawsuit alleging that the university was aware of prior abuse allegations against the now-deceased Dr. Reginald Archibald, a pediatrician at the hospital from 1940 to 1982 before his death in 2007.

The plaintiffs, a brother and sister identified in the lawsuit only as M.L. and J.L., were teenage patients of Dr. Archibald in the late 1970s. During after-hours visits, the lawsuit alleges, the doctor took photos of the teenagers’ genitals and fondled them. After telling their mother about the abuse on their way home, she never brought them back to Archibald, the suit said.

According to the Rockefeller University Hospital sex abuse lawsuit, the hospital and the university were aware of complaints against the doctor dating back decades, but continued to give the doctor “unfettered access to children” and “did nothing to stop” the abuse.

Indeed, multiple staff members—along with the university president—were aware of complaints about Archibald sexually abusing minors as early as the 1960s.

Hundreds of Patients Come Forward

The siblings are far from the only former patients to come forward with allegations against Archibald. In fact, hundreds of former patients who say that they were abused by Dr. Reginald Archibald have filed a Rockefeller University Hospital sex abuse lawsuit, though many of these claims have been settled privately.

While the university reached a settlement agreement with more than 200 survivors before their lawsuits made it to court, there are still many others who have not yet reached a settlement agreement.

One Rockefeller University Hospital sex abuse lawsuit was filed on behalf of 80 people, ranging from 40 years old to late 70s, according to Poughkeepsie Journal. Most, but not all, of the plaintiffs are male.

Hundreds of children, and maybe even thousands, may have been abused by the now-deceased pediatrician during his long career. On top of his position at Rockefeller University Hospital, Archibald also reportedly used his volunteer work at Boys & Girls Clubs and summer camps to seek out more victims.

The university has admitted that “there were warning signs” of Archibald’s sexual abuse of child patients in his care, dating back decades.

The nature of these allegations against the late Dr. Archibald mean that for many of his former patients, it has been decades since this abuse would have taken place. Normally, this would mean that the statute of limitations for these kinds of allegations would have expired. However, in recent years, some states—including New York—have taken measures to extend their child abuse statutes of limitations and allow more victims of childhood sexual abuse to come forward to file civil and criminal charges against individuals and organizations.

In 2019, New York passed the Child Victims Act, extending the amount of time that survivors would have to file a childhood sexual abuse lawsuit, and opening a look back window period in which individuals could file such lawsuits regardless of how long ago the alleged abuse took place. The deadline for this filing period is August 14, 2021.

The Child Victims Act also extends the statute of limitations for sexual abuse survivors from age 23 to age 28 to bring criminal charges against their alleged abusers, and from 23 to 55 to sue for monetary damages.

The Rockefeller University Hospital Sex Abuse Lawsuit is M.L. and J.L. v. Rockefeller University, et al., in the Supreme Court of the State of New York, County of New York.

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