The suit was filed against the academy, the St. John’s Northwestern Military Academy Foundation, and Pablo Gonzalez Carvajal. According to its website, the school is now known as St. John’s Northwestern Academies.
Reports of Abuse were Ignored
The school “fostered a Lord of the Flies atmosphere among the student cadets,” according to the firm that filed the suit. The school is alleged to have “allowed and encouraged a prefect-style model of student self-governance while turning a blind eye to multiple known and reported on-campus incidents of physical and sexual violence between cadets.”
Related: Child Sex Abuse Lawsuit
The firm said the suit was filed Nov. 10, 2022 in the federal Eastern District of Wisconsin court. According to the release, the suit “details the alleged negligent actions of the academy allowing for a then-minor plaintiff. . . to suffer repeated abuse by a fellow cadet several years ago despite assurances to (the victim’s) parents that the Academy would provide a safe and adequately staffed environment for their son.”
Among nine counts, the complaint alleges:
- violations of Title IX of the Education Amendments Act of 1972
- Negligence
- fraudulent misrepresentation
- assault and battery
The suit seeks to rectify long-held practices of the academy that continue to torture former cadets with severe physical and psychological effects.
Alleged: SJNA fostered Climate that encouraged Unlawful Conduct
The firm said in a release: “Not only did the school administration repeatedly fail to act as mandatory reporters regarding these conditions, they fostered a climate in which unlawful and unacceptable conduct was encouraged. The courage of our client to come forward regarding this abuse will help protect the future classes of the Academy by forcing them to have zero tolerance when it comes to the sexual abuse of children.”
The plaintiffs seek $75 million and a jury trial. They are listed in the complaint as John Doe, Father Doe and Mother Doe. Records show all three residing in the state of Rhode Island today.
St. John’s Northwestern Academies acknowledged in an emailed statement that it was notified of the lawsuit through a Delafield Police Department investigation. The school said it was made aware of the allegations at the end of the 2011-12 school year.
SJNA said in its statement: “As reported at that time, SJNA fully cooperated with authorities during their investigation. SJNA will respond to the lawsuit through the legal system. St. John’s Northwestern Academies takes all allegations of sexual violence and assault very seriously. Our dedicated faculty and staff have been and will remain steadfast on the safety and well-being of our students and our entire community.”
Complaint Details
The complaint says Carvajal was – either deliberately or through carelessness – provided a master key for the younger cadets’ dormitory rooms during the 2011-12 school year. It alleges that he used the key to access other cadets’ dormitory rooms, including John Doe’s room. It further alleges Carvajal sexually assaulted and abused John Doe on multiple occasions, usually in the evenings after school staff left the dormitories unmonitored.
The complaint further alleges that school staff observed John Doe’s changed behavior, such as “running away and hiding under his bed to avoid Carvajal, yet the staff failed to take action to address John Doe’s changed behavior or its causes.”
The complaint also claims the school failed to report Carvajal to the City of Delafield Police Department. It alleges that school officials allowed the Carvajal crimes to continue until he fled the USA for Mexico “ahead of a police investigation of sexual assaults on campus.”
John Doe further alleges that he has suffered physically, emotionally and psychologically because of Carvajal conduct and the school’s failure to help.
John Doe also alleges that the effects and his constant fear of further attacks created a hostile environment that ruined his grades and education and led to his quitting the school.
Previous lawsuits were filed against the School
The school has also been named in previous lawsuits over child sex abuse. In 2018 in federal court and again in 2019 in Waukesha County Circuit Court. A Florida couple filed a lawsuit against the school claiming their then-12-year-old son was sexually assaulted by an older cadet at a summer camp session at the school in 2012. That federal case was dismissed in January 2019, and court records show the Waukesha County Circuit Court case was dismissed.
Parents in Illinois filed a lawsuit in 1999 against the school in Cook County Circuit Court. They alleged cadets “were subjected to beatings by other cadets, hazings and verbal assaults.” They also allege gambling and drug use were allowed on school grounds. Online court records appear to show the case worked its way to the federal courts before eventually being dismissed.
RELATED
- Child Sex Abuse Lawsuit
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by Matthews & Associates
