Child sex abuse cases involving New Hanover Co. school board, former teachers move forward after ruling

Child sex abuse cases involving New Hanover Co. school board, former teachers move forward after ruling

Child sex abuse cases involving New Hanover Co. school board, former teachers move forward after ruling

Child sex abuse cases involving New Hanover Co. school board, former teachers move forward after ruling

WILMINGTON, N.C. (WECT) – A Friday ruling by the North Carolina Supreme Court means cases involving child sexual abuse claims against former New Hanover County teachers can move forward.

Joel Rhine, the attorney representing a group of victims alleging abuse and misdoing, said the ruling is an important step toward justice.

“It’s fabulous news,” he said Monday. “We’re relieved, we’re happy about the way it was done and it just shows nobody can stand for this. Nobody can stand for it. We’ve got to do better.”

Rhine’s firm is representing three women seeking damages from the New Hanover County Board of Education and former teacher Peter Frank. The former Roland-Grise Middle School band teacher is over two years into a sentence of at least 50 years after being found guilty on more than a dozen counts of sex crimes.

While work is restarting on the Frank case, attorneys also continue work on litigation in a similar case against another former New Hanover County teacher, Michael Kelly, though Rhine said the court’s decision doesn’t have a significant impact on the three remaining John Does involved. The county settled with a group of accusers in that case for $5.75 million last year.

“Over and over again – how does that happen? I’ll be damned if I’m gonna sit and let that go,” Rhine said.

Without the court’s ruling, Rhine said civil litigation against Frank and the board would’ve gone away because of the previous statute of limitations.

The SAFE Child Act, passed by the general assembly in 2019, introduces a new statute of limitations, giving child sex abuse victims the opportunity to bring legal action until they’re 28 years old. Previously, that couldn’t be done after the victim turned 21. The act also introduces new mandatory reporting and training requirements, and new protections for children communicating with high-risk sex predators online.

Defendants argued to the state Supreme Court that they were immune from liability once the time period had expired to bring a claim, Rhine said, which would leave only the person at hand responsible. The court, though, ruled against them.

The challenge to the act has been costly and has had a negative impact on victims, Rhine said. He said his goal is to ensure justice, and hopefully put a stop to the behavior long-term.

“These are brave, brave people, and I admire them,” he said of the victims. “We want to get them the help that they need, and the only way we can get them the help they need is to pursue these actions.”

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