Photo: Myrtle Beach Police Department image (top left)
Horry County Solicitor’s Office image (top right)
A previous, multi-part series of articles was published on this website with results of a more than 18-month long investigation by Talk Williamsport.com.
This story is graphic and contains details related to multiple indecent sexual assaults.
The author and editor of this story have made the editorial decision to not publish the names of the individuals under the age of 18 at the time of the incident who have been clearly identified as committing these acts in this case; even though they have been formally charged with a crime in South Carolina.
A Baseball Story In The Birthplace Of Little League Baseball
IF NOTHING HAPPENED IN MYRTLE BEACH
WHY WON’T THE WASD TELL US THE STORY?
THE 2018 WAHS BASEBALL MYRTLE BEACH STORY – “FACTUAL HISTORY”
By Todd Bartley, Talk Williamsport
News@talkwilliamsport.com
The following series is based upon the recent First Amended Complaint filed in Federal Court by the attorneys for John Doe #1; who was indecently sexually assaulted during the Williamsport Area High School Baseball Team trip in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina in the spring of 2018.
From the First Amended Complaint filed on Thursday, May 11, 2023.
“19. This lawsuit is about an educational institution that had special responsibilities and obligations to protect the most innocent among us—children and students—from sexual abuse and the complete and abject failures of that same educational institution to fulfill those responsibilities and obligations. Williamsport Area High School (“WAHS”), operated and administered by Defendant WASD, failed in its most basic legal duties to guard against the sexual abuse of a minor.
For years, if not decades,
WASD was aware of hazing incidents that would occur
on school sponsored athletic trips,
including instances of sexual abuse of students
in their care and custody on these outings.
Yet, WASD turned a blind eye to the knowable and reasonably knowable,
allowing child sexual abuse to occur under its supervision.
However, this matter is also about the cover-up of abuse
perpetrated by Defendant WASD and its
staff/representatives/agents, including but not limited to
Defendants Dr. Brandon Pardoe, Roger Freed,
Sean McCann, Ryan Miller, and Fred Holland
in choosing to protect their own reputation
and the reputation of WASD
at the expense of the safety
and well-being of children in their care, custody, and/or control, including Plaintiff.”
From the First Amended Complaint filed on Thursday, May 11, 2023:
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE MIDDLE DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA
JOHN DOE
c/o Laffey, Bucci & Kent
1100 Ludlow Street, Suite 300
Philadelphia, PA 19107
Plaintiffs,
v.
WILLIAMSPORT AREA SCHOOL
DISTRICT, LYCOMING COUNTY, DR.
BRANDON PARDOE, ROGER FREED,
SEAN McCANN, RYAN MILLER, FRED
A. HOLLAND, ESQ., WILLIAM WEBER,
in his individual and official capacity, and
JOHN and JANE DOEs #1-#20 (ficticious
names), whose true identities are currently
unknown to Plaintiffs, Defendants.
CIVIL ACTION NO.
4:22-CV-01387-MWB
JURY TRIAL DEMANDED
FIRST AMENDED COMPLAINT
Plaintiff, John Doe, by and through his undersigned counsel Laffey, Bucci & Kent LLP and Stapp Law, LLC, hereby brings the following First Amended Complaint before this Honorable Court and avers the following in support thereof:
JURISDICTIONAL STATEMENT
1. This Court has subject matter jurisdiction over this case pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §1331, which vests this Honorable Court with original jurisdiction over all civil actions arising under the Constitution, laws, and treaties of the United States. This Court also has subject matter jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1343, which grants district courts original jurisdiction over any civil action to recover damages or to secure equitable or other relief under any Act of Congress providing for the protection of civil rights.
2. This Honorable Court has supplemental subject matter jurisdiction over all related State-law based claims herein pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1367, which vests the federal district courts jurisdiction over all other claims related to claims in the action by which the Court has original jurisdiction that are arising out of the same case or controversy under Article III of the United States Constitution.
3. Plaintiff brings this action to redress a hostile educational environment where Plaintiff was subject to sexual assault and sexual harassment due to the actions and inaction of Defendants. Plaintiff has Standing to bring forth his claim pursuant to Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, 20 U.S.C. § 1681 et seq., as set forth more fully herein.
4. Plaintiff also seeks redress under the Pennsylvania common law theories of negligence and negligence per se against the Defendants.
5. Venue is proper in this district pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1391(b), because the Defendants reside within the Middle District of Pennsylvania and the events giving rise to the claims occurred in this district.
PARTIES
6. Plaintiff, John Doe (fictitious, anonymous name), is an adult male whose name and address are not contained in this First Amended Complaint so as to protect his privacy and identity as he incurred injuries and damages of a sensitive nature as a minor child as a result of the negligent acts and failures of Defendants outlined below. Information which would or could identify John Doe is not contained herein. Plaintiff may be contacted through his counsel as outlined herein.
7. Defendant Williamsport Area School District (hereinafter “WASD”) is a school district organized pursuant to the Public School Code of 1949, Act of March 10, 1949, P.L. 30, as amended, 24 P.S. § 1-101, et seq., and maintains an office at 2780 W. 4th Street, Williamsport, PA 17701. WASD operates Williamsport Area High School (“WAHS”), which Plaintiff John Doe attended.
8. At all relevant times, Defendant WASD was the recipient of Federal Financial Assistance.
9. Defendant Lycoming County (hereinafter “LC”), is a local government unit and is a county of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania with business offices located at 330 Pine Street, Williamsport, PA 17701. LC oversees and/or controls the Lycoming County Office of the District Attorney (hereinafter “DA’s Office”), located at 48 West Third Street, Williamsport, PA 17701, and its county detectives. LC is a “person” as the term is used in 42 U.S.C. § 1983.
10. Defendant Dr. Brandon Pardoe is an adult individual, employed by the WASD, and was at all relevant times, the Head Principal of WAHS. Pardoe was responsible for ensuring that WAHS provides for the safety and care of children while in the custody of WASD. Pardoe is sued in his official and individual capacities for his actions and/or inactions made under color of state law and in violation of Plaintiff’s Constitutional rights as described more fully herein.
11. Defendant Roger Freed is an adult individual, employed by the WASD, and was at all relevant times, an Assistant Principal of WAHS. Freed was responsible for ensuring that WAHS provides for the safety and care of children while in the custody of WASD. Freed is sued in his official and individual capacities for his actions and/or inactions made under color of state law and in violation of Plaintiff’s Constitutional rights as described more fully herein.
12. Defendant Sean McCann is an adult individual, employed by the WASD, and was at all relevant times, the Athletic Director of WAHS. McCann was responsible for ensuring that WAHS provides for the safety and care of children while in the custody of WASD. McCann is sued in his official and individual capacities for his actions and/or inactions made under color of state law and in violation of Plaintiff’s Constitutional rights as described more fully herein.
13. Defendant Ryan Miller is an adult individual who was employed as the Head Baseball Coach for WAHS from approximately 2016 until April 2018. Miller was responsible for ensuring that WAHS provides for the safety and care of children while in the custody of WASD. Miller is sued in his official and individual capacities for his actions and/or inactions made under color of state law and in violation of Plaintiff’s Constitutional rights as described more fully herein.
14. Defendant Fred A. Holland, Esq., is an adult individual, employed by the WASD, and was at all relevant times, the Solicitor for Defendant WASD. Holland was responsible for ensuring that WAHS provides for the safety and care of children while in the custody of WASD. Holland is sued in his official and individual capacities for his actions and/or inactions made under color of state law and in violation of Plaintiff’s Constitutional rights as described more fully herein.
15. Defendant William Weber is an adult individual who was employed by LC as a LC County Detective, assigned to the DA’s Office at all relevant times. Weber is sued in his official and individual capacities for his actions and/or inactions made under color of state law and in violation of Plaintiff’s Constitutional rights as described more fully herein.
16. Defendants Jane and John Does #1 through #20 are currently unknown by actual name after a reasonable search with due diligence. Defendants Does #1-#20 are believed and averred to have exposed Plaintiff to undue risk and actual harm by putting him in a situation where he could—and ultimately—would be sexually assaulted by another student, who failed to adequately investigate and respond to Plaintiff’s sexual assault, and who conspired to cover up both the assault and their failures to properly investigate and respond to said assault, thus causing Plaintiff to be harassed and bullied at school. Said harassment, which caused Plaintiff to leave WAHS, would not have occurred but for the Defendants’ failure to immediately report, discipline, and exercise the appropriate control over the conduct of the students in their care and custody. Defendants Does #1-#20 include, but are not limited to, administrators, school board members, teachers, counselors, coaches, former employees and/or charged agents/employees of Defendants WASD, LC, and other individuals who conspired with the aforementioned defendants and/or are responsible for Plaintiff’s abuse, harassment, and the cover-up of said abuse and harassment.
17. At all relevant times hereto, Defendants WASD and LC were acting by and through their duly authorized actual and/or apparent agents, servants and employees, in particular, their principals, vice principals, school board, school board presidents, teachers, staff, supervisors, and/or team coaches and/or activity coordinators, acting within the course and scope of their actual and/or apparent agency and/or employment.
18. Defendants herein are directly and vicariously liable to Plaintiff for injuries sustained as a result of negligence, gross negligence, outrageous conduct, and reckless misconduct as described further herein, as well as for violations of Plaintiff’s constitutional rights as described further herein, by persons or entities whose conduct was under their control, or right to control
which conduct directly and proximately caused all of Plaintiff’s injuries.
FACTUAL HISTORY
19. This lawsuit is about an educational institution that had special responsibilities and obligations to protect the most innocent among us—children and students—from sexual abuse and the complete and abject failures of that same educational institution to fulfill those responsibilities and obligations. Williamsport Area High School (“WAHS”), operated and administered by Defendant WASD, failed in its most basic legal duties to guard against the sexual abuse of a minor. For years, if not decades, WASD was aware of hazing incidents that would occur on school sponsored athletic trips, including instances of sexual abuse of students in their care and custody on these outings. Yet, WASD turned a blind eye to the knowable and reasonably knowable, allowing child sexual abuse to occur under its supervision. However, this matter is also about the cover-up of abuse perpetrated by Defendant WASD and its staff/representatives/agents, including but not limited to Defendants Dr. Brandon Pardoe, Roger Freed, Sean McCann, Ryan Miller, and Fred Holland in choosing to protect their own reputation and the reputation of WASD at the expense of the safety and well-being of children in their care, custody, and/or control, including Plaintiff.
20. WASD was able to cover-up abuse perpetrated on Plaintiff John Doe by another student enrolled at WAHS with the assistance of Defendant William Weber, a Lycoming County detective employed by Defendant LC and assigned to the DA’s Office. Together they conspired with WASD and the above-named administrators and employees of WASD to conduct a fraudulent investigation which included the destruction and/or attempted destruction of evidence, the suppression and/or attempted suppression of witnesses, failure to cooperate with law enforcement, falsifying records and/or fabricating information in official investigatory documents, and other acts and omissions further outlined throughout this First Amended Complaint which ensured that the perpetrator of Plaintiff’s abuse was able to escape repercussion, thus depriving Plaintiff the opportunity for justice, discriminating against him, and violating his constitutional rights.
21. The Defendants’ failure to immediately report, discipline, and exercise the appropriate control over the conduct of the students in their care and custody, caused Plaintiff to be harassed and bullied at school in the wake of his assault. WASD and its agents, employees, and representatives were aware of the ongoing and continued harassment of Plaintiff at WAHS and did absolutely nothing to stop it. WASD was deliberately indifferent to such conduct, thereby encouraging and enabling the harassment and bullying to continue unabated until Plaintiff John Doe was forced to leave WAHS due to the hostile environment enabled by Defendants.
22. Moreover, Plaintiff John Doe, who is black, was treated less favorably by the Defendants than a similarly situated white student who was also sexually abused on the same WAHS athletic trip. The Defendants violated Plaintiff’s due process and equal protection rights by, among other things outlined herein, by conducting a biased or rigged investigation into the assault on Plaintiff, all while conducting an unbiased investigation into the abuse of the white male victim. At the conclusion of the investigation into the assault committed against the similarly situated white victim, Defendants made a payment of $10,000 to the white victim, while failing to even investigate the abuse against Plaintiff. Plaintiff was removed from the baseball team, but the other similarly situated victim was not. Plaintiff was not afforded the same treatment as the similarly situated white victim and was therefore discriminated against on the basis of his race.
23. Defendants WASD and LC failed in a myriad of ways including, but not limited to: (a) not properly vetting their staff, including Pardoe, Freed, McCann, Miller, Holland and Weber; (b) not properly training and/or supervising their staff; negligently retaining staff they knew or should have known were unqualified to supervise and protect students in their care and custody and/or who were actively working to cover-up the sexual assault of a child; (c) failing to investigate reports of concerning and/or criminal behavior; (d) and failing to have in place any legitimate measures to protect against, investigate, and respond to a student-on-student sexual assault, the very thing that happened to Plaintiff in this suit. Defendants did not simply stick their heads in the sand, they actively obstructed the administration of justice, discriminated against an innocent child victim to protect the perpetrator of a criminal sexual offense, purposefully treated a white victim of the same abuse more favorably, made material misrepresentations to law enforcement and the public, and acted out of self-interest in order to protect the reputation of the school and the baseball team, thereby exposing thousands of vulnerable students to a dangerous environment and, in the process, violating Plaintiff’s Constitutional rights.
Part: I. The Sexual Assault of Plaintiff in this series, is forthcoming.
This is an exclusive and developing story on TalkWilliamsport.com.
