Boychoir School Faces Charges From Another Former Student

Candace Braun

A 48-year-old Philadelphia man and former student at the American Boychoir School recently filed a complaint against the private institution. He alleges that some of the school's faculty engaged in "reckless conduct" by ignoring the "extraordinary evidence" of sexual abuse at the school while he attended it in the 1970s, according to his lawyer, Marc J. Fliedner.

Robert Staab recently filed the complaint against the school in Mercer County Superior Court. He is seeking unspecified damages from the school and several former employees.

Mr. Staab was a student from 1970 to 1972, during the same time period as another former student, John W. Hardwicke, Jr., who has also filed a lawsuit against the school. Mr. Staab claims to have suffered from chronic emotional and physical problems after going through three years of sexual misconduct and assault.

The former student, who was 13 when he first enrolled at the school, claims to have been raped and sodomized by several employees, including former choir director Donald Hanson.

Currently Mr. Staab is unemployed due to "medical challenges he's facing right now," according to his lawyer. Mr. Fliedner declined to comment as to whether or not his client's unemployment was related to the lawsuit.

Mr. Fliedner of Kamensky, Cohen & Associates in Trenton, is a former head of the sex assault unit for the Monmouth County prosecutor's office.

The lawsuit follows on the heels of Mr. Hardwicke's case, which went to the State Supreme Court in November 2004. The lawsuit, which was first filed approximately four years ago, was dismissed because the school is protected under the state's Charitable Immunity Act. This law, which only exists in three states, protects nonprofit institutions against negligence charges.

Mr. Hardwicke's lawsuit was reinstated by the Appellate Division last year, and is currently pending before the state Supreme Court.

According to Mr. Fliedner, Mr. Staab's case may not have to contend with the same circumstances as Mr. Hardwicke's, as the plaintiff is citing that he has experienced injury due to previous incidents that occurred while he attended the school. In New Jersey, the victim has two years from the time he relates the incident to file the claim. Mr. Staab did so in 2003.

Mr. Fliedner added, however, that if the Supreme Court rules in favor of Mr. Hardwicke, it could aid Mr. Staab with his own case.

Jay H. Greenblatt, the lawyer representing the school in the Hardwicke case, said on Tuesday that he has not been retained to represent the school in the Staab case.

"I've never even seen this complaint," he said.

Calls made to the American Boychoir School were unreturned; however, in past interviews Boychoir President Donald Edwards has said that the incidents that took place in the 1970s were part of a "dark chapter in [the school's] otherwise bright history."

He said the school currently enforces a child protection program for its students.