Featured Articles

Settlement reached in sexual abuse cases against New Haven Unified School District

Published on: May 10, 2021 | By Cerri, Boskovich & Allard, LLP

District pays $2.25 million to three girls sexually abused by teacher.

The New Haven Unified School District has agreed to pay $2.25 million to three young girls who were sexually abused by their third-grade teacher, Michael William Howey, when they were eight years old. Two of the girls, who were represented by the San Jose law firm of Cerri, Boskovich & Allard, will share equally in the settlement with the third girl, who was represented by another law firm.

The first complaint about Howey’s inappropriate behavior came during the 2002-2003 school year when he was teaching at Cesar Chavez Middle School but school officials ignored it.

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Childhood sexual abuse lawsuit filed against Los Gatos-Saratoga Union High school district

Published on: February 1, 2021 | By Cerri, Boskovich & Allard, LLP

“My innocence was abruptly taken” – former Los Gatos High School track star

The first year of high school is always exciting, a sign that you’re almost a grown up who will soon be forging your own path in life.

That’s how sexual assault survivor “Jane Doe” felt when she joined the Los Gatos High School Girls’ Track team in 1998: the world was her oyster and her future was bright.

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Sex abuse lawsuit filed against Valley Christian High School and prominent coach Greg Marshall

Published on: February 1, 2021 | By Cerri, Boskovich & Allard, LLP

The lawsuit alleges that Valley Christian ignored Marshall’s predatory behavior towards female students, leading to the molestations of at least two female student-athletes.

San Jose, CA – Jan. 5, 2021 – The law firm of Cerri, Boskovich & Allard is announcing the filing of a sexual abuse lawsuit against Valley Christian High School (Santa Clara County Superior Court) and its former coach, Greg Marshall.

The lawsuit alleges that Coach Marshall began sexually abusing girls on his varsity girls’ basketball team almost as soon as he was hired in the 2001-2002 school year.

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Ariana Kukors Smith Settlement Against USA Swimming

Published on: September 26, 2020 | By Cerri, Boskovich & Allard, LLP

The sexual abuse lawsuit brought forth by Olympian Ariana Kukors Smith has been resolved nearly two years after Mrs. Kukors Smith filed the action. The monetary settlement reached by USA Swimming’s insurance companies and Mrs. Kukors Smith will allow the 2012 Olympian to re-focus on the sport that she loves and to begin healing.

“I am glad that we were able to come to a resolution to this difficult process. As I begin the next chapter of my life, I hope that these last two years, along with the efforts of so many others, will help to provide athletes with a safer environment in which to compete,” Mrs. Kukors Smith said.

USA Swimming added the following: Throughout this process, Mrs. Kukors Smith has shown incredible strength and bravery and offered a powerful voice to all survivors. In sharing her story, Mrs. Kukors Smith thrust the very important subject matter of sexual abuse within youth serving organizations into focus and furthered important dialogue about the continued need for robust athlete protection policies and strong athlete and parent education.

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United States Tennis Association named in sexual abuse lawsuit

Published on: January 16, 2020 | By Cerri, Boskovich & Allard, LLP

Civil lawsuit filed on victim’s behalf by Robert Allard of Cerri, Boskovich & Allard

When “W.S.” met Coach Normandie Burgos he was just seven years old, a young boy who was good at tennis and wanted to get better.

There’s no disputing that Burgos wanted W.S. to become a great tennis player – he repeatedly told W.S.’s parents that he was a “champion.” But as the years passed, W.S. grew up and Coach Burgos began to want more.

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Back to school sexual abuse safety tips

Published on: August 21, 2019 | By Cerri, Boskovich & Allard, LLP

Record number of educators continue losing their teaching credential due to sex crime convictions, yet schools are not implementing proactive prevention training.

With the month of August signaling the start of another school year, the San Jose law firm of Cerri, Boskovich & Allard is urging parents and school officials to be aware of teachers who exhibit predatory “red flag” behavior, which almost always precedes the sexual abuse of a student.

“Sexual predators signal their intent to sexually abuse a student by slowly crossing the boundaries established to protect students,” said former San Jose police sergeant and sex crimes detective Mike Leininger. “The reality is that predators are not caught abusing children, but they can be caught breaking rules and crossing boundaries if educators and parents know what to look for.”

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Sexual Abuse Lawsuit Filed Against San Jose Unified School District

Published on: June 6, 2019 | By Cerri, Boskovich & Allard, LLP

Lawsuit states that it took two complaints by Willow Glen Middle School parents for the school to finally act against teacher Clifford Pappadakis.

The San Jose Unified School District is facing a sexual abuse lawsuit filed on behalf of two former Willow Glen Middle School girls, victims of photographs taken by former Physical Education teacher and coach Clifford Pappadakis. The photos, taken unknowingly, showed the girls in compromising and/or sexual positions, with some zoomed in on the minors’ private areas.

Photographs found on Pappadakis’ District-issued laptop included many captioned images of minors in sexually suggestive poses. Pappadakis was criminally charged and convicted in 2018 for possessing child porn and taking sexually provocative photos of his students.

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Stockton Swim Club sued following coach’s arrest for sex abuse

Published on: June 6, 2019 | By Cerri, Boskovich & Allard, LLP

The January 2019 arrest of Stockton Swim Club Coach Shunichi Fujishima has exposed yet another youth athletic organization that ignored its duty to protect the children in its care.

Fujishima, 23, faces criminal charges that he had unlawful sexual intercourse with a 12-year-old girl he was coaching at the Stockton Swim Club. The club is now listed as “permanently closed” on the social media site Yelp.

Fujishima was also charged with committing lewd and lascivious acts upon a child and possession of child pornography. He remains incarcerated in the San Joaquin County jail on $1.8 million bond.

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Bay Area Track Coach Chioke Robinson Arrested for Sex Crimes

Published on: February 25, 2019 | By Cerri, Boskovich & Allard, LLP

Another San Francisco Bay Area Track Coach is facing sexual abuse charges following his arrest. Chioke Robinson, San Francisco State Women’s Track and Field coach, was arrested by San Jose Police on several counts of child sexual abuse. Robinson coached at both Piedmont Hills and Los Gatos High Schools before coaching at San Francisco State.

Robinson is charged with the sexual abuse of four minors, ages 12, 15, 17 and 17. He was arrested by the San Jose Police Department’s Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force / Child Exploitation Detail (CED).

According to a San Jose Police Department press release, the investigation revealed that between the years 1999 and 2011, Robinson sexually assaulted the victims.

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San Jose Track Coach Greg Marshall Facing Sex Crime Charges Against Minors

Published on: January 30, 2019 | By Cerri, Boskovich & Allard, LLP

The sexual abuse legal team at Cerri, Boskovich & Allard is investigating claims that former Valley Christian High School coach allegedly committed sexual abuse crimes against two minors. Call our office if you are or a loved one have been a victim of San Jose coach Greg Marshall.

UPDATE

The San Jose Mercury News is reporting that “multiple former female athletes reached out to the San Jose Police Department’s Child Exploitation Detail.”

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