Richard O’Connor, age 45, a former elementary school teacher and wrestling coach in the Orange County (O.C.) pleaded guilty to possession of child sexual abuse material (CSAM). According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, at least one of the videos portrayed masochistic sexual conduct involving a child. O’Connor was a fourth-grade teacher at Crescent Elementary School in Anaheim. He was also a volunteer boys’ wrestling coach at Canyon High School, also in Anaheim.
According to authorities, back in October 2022, agents with the Homeland Security Investigations served a warrant for the content’s of O’Connor’s Apple iCloud account. A review of the account found at least 81 videos and 158 images of CSAM. The suspect admitted that many of the videos/images were of infants or toddlers being subject to violent, sadistic, or masochistic conduct.
O’Connor is not accused of victimizing any of his students; however, he will be required to register as a sex offender. He faces up to 20 years in federal prison.
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Child Sexual Abuse in Schools and Your Right to Sue
As mentioned above, O’Connor is not accused of victimizing any of his former students. Still, parents are concerned. Without a doubt, child sexual abuse is very common in schools. Teachers, coaches, and other staff members are trusted by students and parents, alike, and have very easy access to children. Unfortunately, when the abuse occurs, students do not always come forward and report the abuse. When they do report the abuse, they are often disregarded by those who are supposed to be making sure that they are safe. In many cases of child sex abuse in schools, there are multiple victims and the abuse is ongoing.
The fact is that school districts have a duty to keep their students safe. They have a duty to subject all new employees and existing employees to background checks. They must also properly supervise interactions between employees and students. In addition, they must appropriately respond to reports of sexual abuse whenever these arise. Unfortunately, school districts and those in charge at individual schools often fail students when it comes to this.
If your child was sexually abused in school, you could have grounds to file a lawsuit. If you were sexually abused when you were a minor, you could still have grounds to file a lawsuit even if it has been many years since the abuse happened. For more information about your right to file a child sex abuse lawsuit for abuse that happened at a school or at the hands of a teacher or other school staff, contact the experts here at our law firm today.
Child Pornography and Victim’s Right to Sue
Child pornography is any material that depicts a minor engaging in sexual conduct or activities. Child pornography, in general, is illegal under both state and federal law – although most states have their own laws regarding the matter. In California, for example, viewing child pornography is not criminalized; however, possessing or controlling child pornography materials is criminalized.
If you were a victim of child pornography, you could have the right to file a lawsuit under federal law. Under Masha’s Law, child pornography victims have the right to sue their abusers and anyone else who contributed to their abuse (including those who viewed, downloaded, purchased, or shared the material). Survivors can pursue civil lawsuits against each individual involved in their abuse and seek compensation of at least $150,000. The law also applies to “sexting” and both adults who text pornographic images to minors and to adults who distribute the explicit content of minors (this also includes private images/videos that the minor did not intend to be distributed).
The Statute of Limitations to Sue
If you were the victim of child sex abuse, you could have grounds to sue. In California, victims of child sex abuse have until the age of 40 (and sometimes longer) to file their child sexual abuse claims. If you were the victim of child pornography, you could also have the right to sue. Under Masha’s Law, which was discussed above, survivors have until age 28 to file civil lawsuits. If you are unsure of the total length of time that you have to pursue your claim, do not hestiate to contact the experts here at our law firm immediately. Our team is more than ready to guide you every step of the way.
Contact the Normandie Law Firm Today
If you are looking for a child sexual abuse lawyer, contact us today. The lawyers here at the Normandie Law Firm are more than ready to provide you with the guidance that you need to fight for your rights and secure the settlement that you are owed. Our team has decades of experience handling all sorts of claims and is ready to provide you with the best representation around. Here at our law firm, we are committed to making the legal process as simple as possible for you and your family. We offer free legal services, which include free consultations and free second opinions. During these free legal services, our team will be available to provide you with absolutely all the information that you need to either begin or continue your claim. Yes – we can help you even if you have already started the legal process elsewhere but are looking to switch attorneys.
These legal services are available as part of our Zero-Fee guarantee, which ensures that our clients will never be required to pay any upfront legal costs for our legal services. In addition, our firm works on contingency, so our clients will never be required to pay anything until after winning their claims. If you do not win, you simply will not be responsible for any legal fees.
If you are ready to speak with our experienced child sex abuse lawyers, contact us today.
