YOUTH SERVING ORGANIZATIONS

Although most news reports focus on cases against the Catholic Church and the Boy Scouts of America, we have represented abuse survivors against many different youth-serving organizations who failed to protect children from being sexually abused, including youth sports, the Mormon Church, Jehovah’s Witnesses, the YMCA, public and private schools, camps, foster care agencies, group homes, juvenile detention facilities, hospitals, and doctors.

If you or someone you love was sexually abused in a youth-serving organization, please contact us to learn your legal options under California’s new law for abuse survivors.  The new law gives all abuse survivors, regardless of their current age, a limited time to file a civil claim for the abuse they suffered.

Pomona Unified School District

We represent a number of abuse survivors who have claims against school districts.  For example, one of our clients filed a lawsuit against the Pomona Unified School District because she alleges that she was sexually abused in the mid-1990s by Brian Crichlow when she was a student at Pomona High School and Crichlow was one of its athletic coaches.  Our client also alleges she was forced to witness another coach, Kitrick Taylor, sexually abuse and rape another student from the school.  You can read more about her case by clicking here.  If you have information that may be helpful to her case, please contact us.

Sponsoring Organizations of Boy Scout Troops

Almost every Boy Scout unit (e.g., a pack or a troop) is “sponsored” by a youth serving organization, including churches and schools.  For example, for decades the Mormon Church required most young boys to participate in Boy Scouts.  In order to have a Boy Scout troop or pack, the Mormon Church had to obtain permission from the Boy Scouts in the form of a “charter.”  The charter agreement generally required the sponsoring organization, like the Mormon Church, to take responsibility for selecting the Scout leaders and volunteers of each troop or pack.

While the Boy Scouts of America (national) knew for decades that adults were using their positions as Scout leaders or volunteers to abuse children, in many cases it was the sponsoring organization that received complaints of child abuse and ignored them, or saw “red flags” that suggested abusive behavior and ignored them.   Anyone who was abused in relation to the Boy Scouts program should look closely at whether they have a legal claim against the organization who sponsored their troop or pack.  Although the Boy Scout have filed for bankruptcy, the sponsoring organizations are currently not a part of the bankruptcy, which means abuse survivors must take separate legal action to protect and pursue any claim they may have against a sponsoring organization.  You can read more about the Boy Scout bankruptcy by clicking here.