/EINPresswire.com/ Three years after ABC News 20/20 investigative report implicated USA Swimming, little has changed according to attorney Robert Allard.
Attorney Robert Allard continues to seek justice for sex abuse coaching victims against USA Swimming, now more than three years after ABC News 20/20 reported on one of this country’s worst sex abuse scandals in US sports history. Allard continues to represent Jancy Thompson in her case (Santa Clara County Superior Court, Case #CV174783) that alleges her former coach Norm Havercroft repeatedly molested her as a young teenage swimmer.
Prior to the childhood sex abuse, Coach Havercoft was very much on USA Swimming’s radar as number complaints had been presented to USA Swimming concerning numerous “red flags” concerning his handling of minor female swimmers. USA Swimming, through its captive insurance carrier, also knew about a prior claim presented by one of Ms. Thompson’s teammates, which it eventually settled pursuant to a secret settlement in 2002. Despite this knowledge, USA Swimming through its Executive Director Chuck Wielgus declared under penalty of perjury in 2009 that USA Swimming had no prior knowledge of misbehavior by this coach. This case will be headed to the California Sixth District Court of Appeal to decide whether Thompson’s case should be dismissed on a statute of limitations technicality or whether it should go back to Superior Court for a trial by jury.
“Since USA Swimming has absolutely no defense to the fact that it had prior knowledge of Havercroft and then went to great efforts to cover it up, its only saving grace is to rely on these artificial time limitation periods. Instead of owning up to what it did to a sex abuse victim, USA Swimming would rather spend millions on lawyer fees to take advantage of procedural loopholes so that it can get away with fraud and perjury, not to mention predators getting away with sexual molestation”, stated childhood molestation attorney Robert Allard.
Across the country USA Swimming continues to reel from bad coaches now being outed as predators by parents and community members. In Utah, Coach Greg Winslow has been fired from his coaching job for allegedly sexually abusing a young teenage Arizona swimmer. Allard’s legal team represent the victim and her family.
In Southern California, long time USA Swimming benefactor Dia Rianda is suing a USA Swimming member club and coach Mark Schubert for allegedly firing her for reporting the alleged inappropriate sexual conduct of Coach Bill Jewell. Rianda was fired for reporting the misconduct. Jewell would later resign with the charges hanging over his head.
In Washington DC, former Olympic and USA Swimming coach Rick Curl is facing a sentencing hearing in May following his guilty plea to molesting Kelley Currin Davis nearly 30 years ago when she was a young teenage swimmer.
In Baltimore, Maryland, Michael Phelps and Bob Bowman’s swim club, North Baltimore Aquatic Club (NBAC) is under fire for three major sex abuse incidents. In one case, a Hall of Fame coach resigned last year following an alleged victim coming forward and claiming that she was abused as a young swimmer. NBAC is also dealing with the drowning death of Louis Lowenthal and the sex abuse / bullying case of a young teenage child allegedly tormented and abused by a fellow swimmer. In that case, rather than reprimanding the perpetrator, Bowman and Phelps took the unprecedented action of reprimanding the victim and telling her parents that they should relocate to another club.
“More than 70 coaches are now on the USA Swimming list of banned coaches”, said Allard. “USA Swimming has admitted that there is a private secondary list of suspected predator coaches yet they refuse to warn parents or the community about those coaches”, stated Allard. “We will not stop our efforts on behalf of USA Swimming sex abuse victims until each and every one of them receives justice and until the leadership at USA Swimming is replaced with a group of individuals who care more about molestation victims than predator coaches”, added Allard.
About Corsiglia, McMahon & Allard
The childhood sexual abuse attorneys at Corsiglia, McMahon & Allard have a national reputation and a proven record of representing victims and their families in seeking civil justice against their molester and/or those that cover up for child molesters.
All three of its name partners, Bradley Corsiglia, Timothy McMahon and Robert Allard, have been named as Top 100 Trial Lawyers by the National Trial Lawyers Association and also designated as “Super Lawyers”. Allard was honored as 2012 California Lawyer of the Year for Public Justice as a result of helping children and their families recover from the evils of sexual abuse.
Media Contact:
Robert Allard
Corsiglia, McMahon & Allard
408-289-1417
http://www.child-molestation-attorney.com
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