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Blue Ridge sex scandal suit to proceed against all defendants
By Lynn Hotaling
A lawsuit brought by the mother of a teen involved in the sex scandal that rocked Blue Ridge School almost four years ago will proceed against all defendants now that the N.C. Court of Appeals has upheld a ruling by Superior Court Judge Marlene Hyatt.
The case has been stalled since November 2002 when Hyatt ruled in favor of the plaintiff, Sybil Smith of Cashiers, and denied separate motions to dismiss and cross-claims entered by four of six defendants – the Jackson County Board of Education, former Sheriff Jim Cruzan, former deputy and Blue Ridge School resource officer Robbie Hess and former BRS Principal Lib Balcerek. Hess and Cruzan appealed that ruling, but their motions were denied by the Appeals Court.
While the Appeals Court decision clears the way for the suit to proceed to trial, no court date has been set, according to Joe McGuire of Asheville, Smith’s attorney.
Other named defendants are BRS 2001 graduate and athletic standout Jeremy Stewart and former coach and Athletic Director Joe Brooks, who is currently serving a five-year jail term in connection with events that occurred at the K-12 southern Jackson County School during the spring of 2001.
Smith filed the suit on behalf of her daughter, who was a 14-year-old freshman at the time of the events that resulted in criminal charges against Brooks, Hess and Stewart. Charges against Stewart were later dropped.
In the lawsuit filed Jan. 31, 2002, Smith seeks a jury trial and asks for damages “in excess of $10,000” each from the defendants on a number of counts as compensation for her daughter’s mental anguish, emotional distress, medical expenses and other suffering caused by the defendants’ alleged negligence.
Smith’s suit accuses school officials, including then-Principal Balcerek, and former Sheriff Cruzan of negligent supervision of their employees, Brooks and Hess, and with failing to protect Smith’s daughter from harm while she was at school.
To back up the allegation of negligence, Smith’s suit includes 26 causes of action that give background information and detail events said to have caused harm to her daughter between January and May 2001. Most information about alleged sexual misconduct at the school is detailed under this first count.
Smith’s lawsuit alleges that Brooks used his position as a teacher and coach to “encourage and promote a sexual relationship between Stewart and (Smith’s) daughter.” It further states that on one occasion Brooks encouraged Stewart and Smith’s daughter to leave during school hours to go to Brooks’ house for the purpose of engaging in sex.
Brooks pleaded guilty in July 2001 to having sex with a student and facilitating underage students having sex with each other both at his home and in his office during school hours.
Hess, who was fired by then-Sheriff Cruzan after the sheriff learned of his involvement, pleaded guilty that same month to obstruction of justice for his role in assisting Brooks and received a suspended sentence.
In their appeal of Judge Hyatt’s decision, both Cruzan and Hess claimed they were protected from suit by the public duty doctrine, which protects law enforcement officers from lawsuits, but Appeals Court judges ruled that doctrine does not apply to this case.
With regard to Hess, judges ruled that as a sworn law enforcement and school resource officer, Hess’s primary duty was to protect students like Smith’s daughter.
“We conclude that the duty to report child abuse is not the type of discretionary law enforcement function shielded by the doctrine,” the court wrote. “Hess was not required – nor was he permitted – to weigh the safety interests of the public when he decided not to report Stewart’s possible statutory rape of Smith’s daughter or Brooks’ sexual exploitation of Smith’s daughter and Stewart.
“His failure to report known child abuse was, therefore, outside the scope of conduct generally associated with law enforcement, and the public duty doctrine does not bar this claim,” the judges wrote.
The Appeals Court also found grounds for allowing the suit to proceed against Cruzan. A public officer, like Cruzan was at the time “was shielded from liability unless he engaged in discretionary actions which were allegedly ... willful and deliberate,” states the Appeals Court opinion.
The plaintiff’s suit alleges that Cruzan knew Hess had previously assaulted a minor before he assigned him to the school.
“Because the proposed amended complaint alleges willfulness and a factual basis for that general allegation, we cannot find that the trial court abused its discretion in allowing the plaintiff’s motion to amend (her lawsuit) to add claims against Cruzan individually,” wrote the judges.
Cruzan has denied that he knew of any misconduct by Hess before Hess was hired as a deputy. He told The Herald in 2002 that his office received an anonymous call around the time of Hess’ June 2001 arrest. The call was from a woman who alleged Hess had a relationship with her while she was a student and Hess was a substitute teacher at Smoky Mountain High School, Cruzan said. The woman refused to give her name and detectives determined it was an unfounded complaint, Cruzan said at the time.
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