Kevin Mulhearn Won Settlement From Brooklyn's Poly Prep
Twersky said that he has been inundated with emails — some supportive, some derogatory — since the first Forward story was published in December. They include many tales from former students who say they were abused and have since suffered broken marriages, substance abuse, and are plagued by suicidal thoughts.
An attorney who just won a landmark sex abuse lawsuit against an elite private school has been retained to represent a former student with similar claims against Yeshiva University.
Kevin Mulhearn has been hired by Mordechai Twersky, the first of almost two dozen students to come forward claiming they were abused decades ago while studying at Y.U.’s High School for Boys, in Manhattan.
Mulhearn said that he hoped more victims would join in any potential lawsuit against Y.U. “I think there is a substantial benefit in consolidating these claims as much as possible,” Mulhearn said.
Twersky says that not only was he abused by Rabbi George Finkelstein, who went on to become principal of the Y.U.- run high school, but Y.U. also knew of Finkelstein’s and other staff members’ abusive behavior and covered it up for decades.
Since the Forward first reported Twersky’s allegations, on December 13, 2012, more than 20 men have come forward to say they were sexually, physically or emotionally abused by Finkelstein or by Rabbi Macy Gordon, a Talmud teacher at the school. The two men were employed by Y.U. for a combined period of more than 50 years, between 1956 and 1995. Finkelstein, who lives in Israel, resigned from his position at the Jerusalem Great Synagogue after the Forward story was published. Gordon, who also lives in Israel, was put on indefinite leave from his teaching job. Both men deny the allegations.
The appearance of Mulhearn in the widening abuse allegations at Y.U.’s high school raises the legal and financial stakes considerably. At the end of December, Mulhearn won an undisclosed sum for 12 men who said they were sexually abused by football coach Phil Foglietta at Brooklyn’s Poly Prep Country Day School.......
READ ENTIRE ARTICLE: http://forward.com/articles/168655/top-lawyer-takes-yeshiva-abuse-case/
Thursday, January 03, 2013
"There is no limit on what is so often a lifetime of suffering and anguish for victims of child sex abuse"
Queens lawmaker Margaret Markey says Poly Prep sex abuse scandal should lead to elimination of statute of limitations for victims
"As this case demonstrates, adding a few extra years to current law is not enough," Markey said of the Poly Prep scandal.
Poly Prep Country Day School last week settles a lawsuit claiming it put its reputation ahead of student safety while former football coach Phil Foglietta sexually abused boys.Related Stories
Queens Assemblywoman Margaret M. Markey (D-Maspeth)New York state assemblywoman Margaret Markey has introduced legislation since 2006 that would permit victims of childhood sexual abuse to seek criminal charges and file civil lawsuits until their 28th birthday.
But the Queens Democrat said the Poly Prep Country Day School lawsuit and other sex abuse scandals have pushed her to call for a complete end to the criminal and civil statute of limitations when she introduces the Child Victims Act later this month.
"As this case demonstrates, adding a few extra years to current law is not enough," Markey said of the Poly Prep scandal.
As the Daily News first reported last week, the attorney who represented the 12 men who last week settled the explosive lawsuit which accused Poly Prep administrators of covering up decades of sexual abuse by longtime football coach Phil Foglietta said he welcomes the change in the legislation.
"I think the statute of limitations for sexual abuse victims is one of the most absurd and asinine statutes on the books in New York state," Orangeburg lawyer Kevin Mulhearn said. "It does not reflect the reality that for many survivors of sexual abuse, it takes decades to realize the extent of the damage they have suffered."
Current state law requires survivors of childhood sexual abuse to file a case by the time they are 23 years old. Previous versions of Markey's Child Victims Act would have extended the deadline by five years.
The Poly Prep lawsuit, as well as sex-abuse scandals at Penn State, Syracuse and at other institutions, showed that most victims aren't prepared to address the damage they have suffered until they are in their 40s or 50s, said Mike Armstrong, a spokesman for Markey.
"The world has changed," Armstrong said. "It's time to confront the issue in New York state."
Armstrong said advances in DNA science now make it possible for law-enforcement agencies to prosecute sexual predators who would have escaped justice in the past.
The latest version of the Child Victims Act will retain a controversial one-year window that would allow sex-abuse victims who had been previously barred from bringing civil litigation because of the statute of limitations to file lawsuits.
"There is no limit on what is so often a lifetime of suffering and anguish for victims of child sex abuse," Markey said. "Likewise, there must be no limit on the ability of society to prosecute abusers and to hold accountable the institutions and organizations who protect and hide them."
The Catholic Church and other institutions have vociferously opposed Markey's bill. Dennis Poust, a spokesman for the New York State Catholic Conference, said he could not comment on Markey's latest bill because he has not yet seen it. The church, he said, does support legislation introduced by State Sen. Andrew Lanza (R-Staten Island) that extends the statute of limitations.
Poust said Catholic leaders do not oppose extending the statute of limitations, but they do oppose the window that would allow lawsuits to be filed by victims. Poust said the window is discriminatory against private and religious institutions because victims abused by public school teachers and other public employees have to file a notice of claims months after they are assaulted, he said.
The News reported last week that the explosive suit filed against Poly Prep in 2009 — which claimed officials knew their coach was a sexual predator, but ignored complaints because they didn't want to jeopardize the institution's athletic reputation and fund-raising efforts — had been settled. Terms of the settlement have not been disclosed.
Mulhearn and several of his clients appeared at a news conference in Albany last February to urge lawmakers to pass Markey's bill.
Poly Prep attorneys argued that the suit, filed in Brooklyn federal court, should have been dismissed because it was filed long after the statute of limitations had expired. But U.S. District Court Judge Frederic Block, in what may be a watershed moment for sexual abuse survivors, ruled in August that portions of suit could proceed because administrators may have lied about when they said they did not become aware of the abuse allegations until 1991.
"The law now allows institutions to hide behind the statue of limitations and profit from their own misconduct and cover-ups," Mulhearn said.
Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/i-team/poly-case-vicims-shouldn-limited-seeking-legal-action-article-1.1231848#ixzz2GsqTqvCz
California's new laws for 2013 address mortgages, gun laws, child sex abuse
Coaches and administrators in K-12 schools as well as higher education employees who have regular contact with children will be required to report suspected child sexual abuse. AB 1434 and AB 1435 were prompted by the scandal involving former Penn State University assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky, who was convicted of sexually abusing 10 boys. Authorities say some former co-workers knew of the abuse but failed to report it to law enforcement.
http://www.dailynews.com/news/ci_22290043/californias-new-laws-2013-address-mortgages-gun-laws