USA: New York principal accused of sexually abusing student ‘almost every day’

A former Manhattan school principal was accused of sexually abusing one of his students on an almost daily basis, grooming her and referring to her as his “princess” and “baby,” a federal lawsuit says. New York Post reported.

The lawsuit, filed in Manhattan, accuses Brett Kimmel, once the head of the Washington Heights Expeditionary Learning School, of behaving inappropriately toward the student over a period of time.

The student, who now lives in Maryland, claims Kimmel groped her, forced her to perform oral sex and attempted to have sexual intercourse with her shortly before her 18th birthday.

The alleged acts began more than a decade ago when the girl was in eighth grade and escalated during her freshman year of college, when Kimmel bombarded her daily with inappropriate texts and emails, the report said.

This communication reportedly continued even after the girl’s older sister confronted Kimmel over his disturbing messages in the summer of 2012.

In her lawsuit, the student alleges that Kimmel harassed her on car rides to and from school throughout her sophomore and junior years.

She said the New York City Department of Education (DOE) also bears responsibility for the ongoing misconduct due to “negligent oversight.”

The lawsuit accuses the DOE of failing to adequately train staff and faculty to recognize and report suspicious behavior and ignoring students’ comments about ongoing abuse.

Despite the serious allegations, the special investigator for city schools said no complaints had been filed against Kimmel. According to city salary records, Kimmel earned $182,844 in the 2015 fiscal year before leaving the DOE in the fall of that year. Today he works as an educational consultant in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

Meanwhile, Kimmel’s attorney Alan Sash has denied the sexual abuse allegations and called for the case to be dismissed in court filings.

However, the student’s lawyer, Julia Kuan, said her client is seeking unspecified damages and initiated the lawsuit to ensure accountability and prevent similar harm from being caused to others.

Although the girl did not report the abuse to police at the time, Kuan declined to discuss further details due to client confidentiality.