Update: February 16, 2021: The lawsuit has been re-filed in Manhattan Supreme Court.
A former Dalton School student who alleged that former headmaster Gardner P. Dunnan sexually assaulted her in 1986 when she was 14 years old has voluntarily ended her lawsuit against Dunnan and the school, according to a March 7 court filing.
It’s a voluntary dismissal without prejudice which means that the plaintiff could re-file at some point.
Court records did not indicate that the case was settled.
The sexual assault lawsuit against Gardner Dunnan
The plaintiff was allowed to remain anonymous because the case involved allegations of child sexual abuse. She is referred to as “J.S.” in the complaint.
According to the complaint, J.S. was offered admission to Dalton, free tuition, and room and board in Dunnan’s home shortly after she and her father met with Dunnan in the summer of 1986 and expressed interest in her attending the school. There was no formal application process.
J.S. moved into Dunnan’s apartment and began attending classes at Dalton in September 1986.
She worked as a “family helper” and assisted Dunnan’s wife with household tasks and babysitting.
J.S. alleged that Dunnan sexually assaulted her on four separate occasions over the next several months. The alleged incidents are described in an earlier post here.
She moved out of Dunnan’s apartment and transferred to a new school around January 1987.
J.S. accused Dalton of negligence claiming that the school “turned a blind eye” to the sexual abuse and failed to properly supervise Dunnan.
She was seeking compensatory and punitive damages from both Dunnan and Dalton.
The case is moved from New Jersey to New York
The case was brought under a New Jersey law which allows victims of sexual abuse to sue when they discover the injury, regardless of when the abuse occurred.
J.S. maintained that she only discovered her injuries caused by Dunnan and Dalton within the last two years, after the emergence of the #MeToo movement.
In September 2018, Dunnan’s legal team notified the court that he intended to file a motion to change venue to the Southern District of New York, followed by a motion to dismiss based on statute of limitations grounds.
Dunnan filed a motion to change venue in October 2018, and a federal judge ruled that the case should be transferred to the Southern District of New York in January 2019.
In February 2019, New York passed a law that allows child victims of sexual abuse to commence a civil lawsuit at any time before they reach 55 years of age.
Dunnan denies the allegations
According to several media reports, Dunnan denied the allegations in a statement issued on June 7, 2018: “During a career spanning more than 55 years in education I have never mistreated a student or previously been accused of doing that, and am heartbroken about these false accusations.”