Featured Articles

Protecting Sexually Abused Kids from Revictimization

Published on: September 20, 2017 | By Cerri, Boskovich & Allard, LLP

The California legislature has adjourned for the 2017 year, taking action on a critical bill affecting child sexual abuse victims. New legislation sets time limits on psychological examinations or “psyche exams” on child sex abuse victims in civil lawsuits. Currently, there are no time limits. The law also mandates that a licensed therapist with experience in child abuse and trauma conduct the exam.

Attorney Robert Allard and the Cerri, Boskovich & Allard legal team, which represents child molestation victims, lobbied for the legislation after witnessing the revictimization of sexually abused children in civil cases by a defendant’s paid expert.

As an example, Mr. Allard provided details of a psychological examination that crossed the line and re-traumatized children. The civil lawsuit was against a San Jose daycare center. Three little girls between the ages of 5 and seven were sexually molested by Keith Woodhouse while attending a San Jose daycare. During the police investigation, Woodhouse admitted the crime. These girls had to relate the details of their molestation to investigating police officers, the District Attorney, the court and to the defendants in their civil lawsuit during their videotaped depositions. Even with all the recorded testimony available, the defendants moved to compel an examination of each girl by both a psychologist and psychiatrist for more than four hours. During the examination, the psychiatrist went into great depth into the details of the abuse causing each of these little girls severe emotional distress.

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Charter School Sexual Abuse Lawsuit Settles for $1.2 Million

Published on: September 15, 2017 | By Cerri, Boskovich & Allard, LLP

As students head back to school, the San Jose law firm of Cerri, Boskovich & Allard is reminding parents about the dangers of sexual abuse by educators. back-to-school The firm is announcing a $1.2 million settlement in a sexual abuse lawsuit filed against a San Jose charter school.

The case involved a high school teacher who sexually abused one of his students and a principal who was directly and expressly notified about the illegal relationship but did not notify the authorities as required by law, instead choosing to investigate himself.

The California mandatory reporting law mandates that an educator report to the authorities any time he or she entertains a reasonable suspicion of sexual abuse. That was not done here. Instead, it took a complaint from a concerned parent to trigger involvement by the police which promptly resulted in an arrest.

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Sexual Abuse Lawsuit Filed Against New Haven Unified School District

Published on: August 1, 2017 | By Cerri, Boskovich & Allard, LLP

New Haven Unified accused of ignoring numerous sexual abuse “red flags”

The New Haven Unified School District (Alameda County Superior Court, Case #17868000) is facing a third sexual abuse lawsuit resulting from the molestation of several elementary school children by former teacher Michael Howey. Howey entered a guilty plea to sex abuse charges, including the plaintiff in this lawsuit, and is now serving a lengthy prison term for his crimes.

Michael Howey, New Haven Unified School District

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Ronald Guinto Boy Scouts Sexual Abuse Lawsuit

Published on: June 6, 2017 | By Cerri, Boskovich & Allard, LLP

Sexual abuse lawsuit names the Boys Scouts of America’s local representative, the Silicon Valley Monterey Bay Council [“SVMBC”], and Willow Glen-based Lincoln Glen Church.

In representing a young sexual abuse victim, our lawsuit alleges that the named entities failed to properly supervise convicted child molester Ronald Guinto. As a result, a then ten-year-old Boy Scout was sexually abused.

The lawsuit claims that in March of 2008, Ronald Guinto contacted the SVMBC and asked if he could volunteer with a Boy Scout pack near his San Jose home. Despite no history with the Boy Scouts nor any wilderness training experience, Guinto was able to obtain a volunteer position with a group of 9 to 11-year-old boys. Within a few months, Guinto achieved a leadership position as Webelos Den Leader for Pack 220. That position gave him the ability to plan and carry out overnight campouts and outdoor activities.

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Morgan Hill Unified School District Will Pay $8.25 Million to Child Molestation Victims

Published on: May 8, 2017 | By Cerri, Boskovich & Allard, LLP

As part of the $8.25 million settlement with three child sex abuse victims, the Morgan Hill Unified School District is also moving forward in implementing and supporting programs aimed at preventing the sexual abuse of students.

The law firm of Cerri, Boskovich & Allard announced that the Morgan Hill Unified School District agreed to pay $8.25 million to three then-elementary school students sexually abused by former teacher John Loyd. At the same time, complying with the wishes of the victims’ parents, the district is also moving forward to carry out child sexual abuse prevention programs.

The agreement was reached as jury selection was about to start in the sexual abuse lawsuit (case #115CV285795 – Santa Clara County Superior Court) against the school district. The three children were represented by attorneys Robert Allard, Lauren Cerri, Ken Turek, and Christopher Schumb.

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Megan’s Law Loopholes

Published on: January 30, 2017 | By Cerri, Boskovich & Allard, LLP

According to California’s Sex Offender Management Board, the number of sex offenders on the Megan’s Law website is nearly 17,000 less than than the number of registered sex offenders in the state. That’s because Megan’s Law exempts some registered sex offenders, including those convicted of sexual battery or a misdemeanor charge of annoying or molesting a child. The law also provides for exclusions of other sex offenses as long as they don’t involve “oral copulation or penetration.”

In the case of Robert Adams, he pleaded no contest to charges that he allegedly molested six girls. But by entering into a plea agreement, the felony charges were dropped in exchange for Adams pleading no contest to six counts of misdemeanor child molestation. Part of Adams’ plea agreement was that he register as a sex offender for life. Adams has reportedly registered with Folsom police as a sex offender. However, the information kept by the police is not available to the public.

When it comes to the state’s public database of sex offenders, Megan’s Law only requires registration of serious and violent sex offenders. The Megan’s Law website is intended to make the public aware of sex offenders by posting their pictures and home addresses online.

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Jury Finds Former USA Swimming National Team Member’s Lawyer Committed Fraud

Published on: September 20, 2016 | By Cerri, Boskovich & Allard, LLP

An Orange County, California jury awarded former Olympic swimming hopeful and USA Swimming National Team member Dagny Knutson $617,810 for the financial and emotional harm caused by her former attorney, Richard Foster. Knutson trusted Foster with her swimming career when she retained him in late 2010, but the aquatics insider instead defrauded Knutson.

The Knutson legal team featured attorneys Robert Allard, Jonathan Little, Mark Boskovich and Laura Liccardo.

“Dagny was used, abused, manipulated and betrayed by a powerful group of aquatic insiders,” said Allard. “This is full vindication for her. After what she has been through and what she has lost, she deserves it.”

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Protect Your Child From Coaching Sex Abuse

Published on: June 3, 2016 | By Cerri, Boskovich & Allard, LLP

Tips to keep your child safe from coaching sex abuse at USA Swimming clubs and YMCA pools

Despite recent stories of USA Swimming coaching sex abuse, swimming is one of the most popular Olympic sports, and the success of famous athletes such as Michael Phelps and Missy Franklin inspires children across the nation to start swim lessons with USA Swimming Clubs, YMCA programs, or municipal summer recreation pools. All too frequently, however, coaches abuse their close relationships with young athletes, and take sexual advantage of them. The problem of coaching sex abuse is worsened when the supervising organization, rather than taking steps to protect the victim and any other children under its care, tries to preserve its reputation by covering up the actions of the coach turned predator.

One of the biggest coaching sex abuse scandals in youth athletics in recent years continues to involve USA Swimming. So far, over a hundred coaches working for USA Swimming’s member clubs have been permanently banned from the sport for molesting, groping, and secretly filming the young athletes under their care.

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$15 Million Settlement for O.B. Whaley Sexual Abuse Victims

Published on: April 20, 2016 | By Cerri, Boskovich & Allard, LLP

Administrative negligence harms innocent O.B. Whaley molestation victims

This case started with a single victim. In January 2012, authorities arrested Craig Chandler on suspicion of molesting a young child at O.B. Whaley Elementary School, where he had worked as a teacher for nine years. As the investigation proceeded, it became clear that he had molested five girls going back to 2010. The jury sentenced Chandler to 75 years in prison. Moreover, O.B. Whaley’s principal, Lyn Vijayendran, who was told of Chandler’s inappropriate behavior but failed to notify police or Child Protective Services, was sentenced to six months in jail.

Attorney Robert Allard of Cerri, Boskovich & Allard led the litigation team against the Evergreen Elementary School District. By preparing an airtight case against the District, Mr. Allard’s team persuaded the District to pay $15 million to the victims for the lifelong harm they are to endure. At the same time, the settlement prevented the poor victims from having to relive their trauma in a courtroom. Allard knew that the Evergreen School District was clearly at fault—that the principal of O.B. Whaley had been previously made aware of Chandler’s inappropriate behavior with students, and had even been observed engaging in inappropriate acts by other teachers, yet the principal had taken no action. Hence the extraordinarily large amount of the settlement.

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Sexual Misconduct by Teachers Highlights Risk of Teacher-Student Texting

Published on: April 11, 2016 | By Cerri, Boskovich & Allard, LLP

Sexual misconduct risk also includes social media “friending”

Concerns about teacher-student texting are under debate in Clark County, Nevada. This after a recent spate of sexual misconduct and molestation cases.

The Las Vegas Sun examined ten years of sexual misconduct cases by county educators (2005 to 2015). They discovered that half the cases involved private electronic communication between the teacher and the victim. Furthermore, from 2010 to 2015, 80% of sexual misconduct cases involved some form of private electronic communication. This included texting, email, and so forth. As a result, predatory teachers have been using text and email to groom their victims.

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