Unanswered questions remain in Education’s handling of sexual abuse reports
Defendants in a civil lawsuit filed by a victim of Alfredo Bruce Smith have not yet responded to allegations that they failed to act on reports that the track coach had been sexually abusing students for years.
2025-01-03 14:40:35 - VI News Staff
The victim is proceeding as an anonymous plaintiff under the pseudonym “John Doe,” and is represented by attorney Daniel Cevallos. The Education Department also has not responded to questions from The Daily News about whether some Charlotte Amalie High School officials have been placed on leave, pending the outcome of a long-awaited investigation that has dragged on since Smith’s arrest in September 2021. Smith, 54, was sentenced in April to 35 years in prison after admitting to raping numerous victims over a 15-year period. Smith often filmed the assaults, many of which occurred on the school campus.
Smith is named as a defendant in the civil lawsuit filed on Dec. 23 in U.S. District Court, alongside the V.I. Education Department, the V.I. Department of Human Services, the V.I. Board of Education, the V.I. government, and school principal Alcede Edwards and teacher Camelia Febres. The 46-page complaint details a wide range of claims, including counts against the government defendants of harassment, creating a hostile environment, deliberate indifference, failure to train staff, and retaliation.