Florida sexual abuse

Can Schools Be Liable for Florida Sexual Abuse Facilitated by District Laptops?

June 1, 2023 | by David J. Halberg, Esq.

If a school principal opened the doors to adult sexual predators and gave them the means and access to regularly communicate with students on school grounds – there would be no question of legal liability for whatever harm was inflicted on those children as a result. But what if the means and access was via a school laptop? Do schools bear a legal duty to monitor district-owned electronic devices to prevent predators from using them to gain access to kids? Florida sexual abuse lawsuit school district laptops

Plaintiffs in a newly-filed Florida sexual abuse lawsuit against a county school board say: Yes.

According to the Miami Herald, a mother is suing a Florida school district because she said her daughter met a predator online while using a school-issued laptop. The 11-year-old was allegedly groomed, kidnapped, and sexually assaulted by the man who first made contact with her through a social media app that she used regularly on her school laptop. The laptops were issued when the school district shifted to remote learning during the pandemic. During this time, there were reportedly on protections to block social media on the devices.

Early into the start of the 2020-2021 school year, the girl was contacted by a 26-year-old man on social media. According to the civil complaint, the man expressed a desire to have a romantic/sexual relationship with her, said he wanted her to move into his home, and he planned to tell everyone that she was a young relative of his. On more than one occasion, he tried to get her to leave home, promised to buy her a new phone, and asked her to provide illicit photographs of herself. Again – all of this was done on her school-issued laptop, on school days, and during school hours. Continue reading

Allegations of Florida Sexual Abuse at Massage Parlors

March 12, 2022 | by David J. Halberg, Esq.

Massage parlors are places with dark rooms, closed doors, and skin-to-skin contact with virtual strangers. Industry ethics codes and state laws are supposed to protect both clients and employees from predatory behavior, but allegations of Florida sexual abuse during massages or at massage parlors have been prevalent in recent years. In addition to busts for human trafficking and prostitution at some operations, there have been numerous civil lawsuits filed against spa owners. West Palm Beach sexual assault

A few years ago, Buzzfeed reported there were dozens of complaints in Florida, California, and other states stemming from alleged sexual assaults at the Massage Envy chain, which has more than 1,200 locations across the country. As our West Palm Beach sexual abuse lawyers can explain, journalists uncovered more than 180 individuals who had filed sexual assault lawsuits, police reports, and/or state board complaints against Massage Envy spas, their employees, and the national company. Many of those claims were allegedly mishandled by the chain. In some cases, managers reportedly dismissed claims for lack of merit based on alleged victims’ refusals to return to the site of the alleged assaults to provide a statement.

In 2018, nearly a dozen female customers in Palm Beach County accused Massage Envy of sexual assault at nine separate Florida locations. Most of those cases involved allegations that massage therapists had touched women in their private areas without consent. Plaintiffs alleged that the company failed to protect clients in a vulnerable setting by systematically and intentionally concealing a “rampant problem” of massage therapists accused of sexually assaulting customers. The company allegedly had an internal policy of urging staff to avoid calling police in cases of reported sexual assault – a practice that purportedly protected both the brand and profit of the company, not the safety and well-being of customers who had no reason to suspect they may be in danger. The women alleged they sought treatment for conditions like painful spinal injuries, and instead were sexually assaulted and exploited.

The company denied liability, but said it was partnering with an outside agency to review policies, improve training, and ensure sexual assault allegations were properly reported to local law enforcement. Continue reading

Florida Sexual Abuse Settlements May Absolve Future Defendants, Should Be Drafted With Great Care

January 14, 2022 | by David J. Halberg, Esq.

When negotiating Florida sexual abuse settlements, one must exercise great care and use precise language. Failure to do so may unintentionally absolve other responsible parties of future accountability. West Palm Beach sexual abuse attorneys

Recently, defense attorneys for Britain’s Prince Andrew, attempting to get a federal civil sexual abuse lawsuit tossed in New York, cited a prior settlement agreement signed in Florida. The prior settlement agreement in question was signed by alleged sexual assault victim, Virginia Giuffre (who has agreed to make her identity public) Andrew’s one-time associate, Jeffrey Epstein. The latter was a jet-setting financier with many high-profile friends who died in 2019 while awaiting a criminal trial for decades of alleged sex trafficking of minors – including Giuffre.

At issue in the pending civil litigation of Giuffre v. Prince Andrew is a $500,000 Florida sexual abuse settlement agreement Giuffre and Epstein signed in 2009. The question is whether it released others – like Andrew – whose purported sexual encounters with underage girls were allegedly arranged and/or facilitated by Epstein.

The prince has vehemently denied Giuffre’s allegations that he sexually abused her when she was a minor. Regardless, his attorneys argue that he’s shielded from civil litigation by that 13-year-old settlement agreement because it contained a provision indicating Giuffre would not bring any future claims against other “potential defendants.” Continue reading