Bergen Catholic wrestling program accused of sexual and verbal abuse in lawsuit

Bergen Catholic High School officials conspired to cover up sexual and verbal abuse in its nationally recognized wrestling program that included the sharing of pornographic images, coaches watching wrestlers strip naked and inappropriate text messages sent to athletes, according to a lawsuit filed on behalf of a former wrestler.

The 29-page, 12-count lawsuit, which was filed in state Superior Court in Bergen County, also alleges that school and Newark Archdiocese officials worked to shield the wrestling coaches from "criminal detection" in a "conspiracy to endanger children."

A former wrestler and his parents allege that the school's president, Brother Brian Walsh, threw him off the team after he complained of abuse during this past wrestling season, according to the suit. The complaint alleges that the school did only a cursory investigation and never contacted authorities.

However, Newark Archdiocese spokesman Jim Goodness said Monday that the Oradell-based school notified the Bergen County Prosecutor's Office. He couldn't say when the notification was made.

The complaint alleges the school's head wrestling coach, David Bell, made inappropriate comments to the wrestler, telling him he was "shredded," an apparent reference to his muscular build, and "texted and emailed Plaintiff that he loved him, as well as other highly inappropriate and sexual predatory behavior on a minor child."

In December, an assistant coach, Dominick "Donnie" Spataro, showed "pornographic and nude photographs of himself and others on his mobile phone to Plaintiff and other minor wrestlers," according to the suit.

The wrestler's parents allegedly told administrators in January that a former assistant Bergen Catholic wrestling coach who had been "let go for bullying and other violations" more than a year ago was allowed back in the wrestling room.

The civil complaint was filed on March 26 on behalf of one former wrestler but also mentions up to 100 other victims, whose identifies are not known, in anticipation of more plaintiffs joining the case.

Andrew T. Miltenberg, the attorney who filed the suit, said in a statement that he anticipates "additional victims and witnesses to come forward" as a result of the case being made public.

Walsh, the school's president, issued a statement through a school spokesman, Steve Mangione, denying any wrongdoing.

"Let's be very clear that the administration has zero tolerance for the actions alleged in this complaint — and consistent with our zero tolerance policy and protocols, despite not having been served the complaint until today, the administration reported these allegations to the Archdiocese of Newark and the Bergen County prosecutor's office when it first learned of them," Walsh said.

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"With that said, the administration believes that this lawsuit is based on allegations that are unfounded, frivolous and untrue," Walsh said in the statement. "The administration will vigorously defend against these false and baseless allegations."

Bell's lawyer, Sean M. Pena, sent a letter to The Record and NorthJersey.com on Friday threatening to take legal action if a story about the lawsuit was published "at this time."

Pena wrote in the letter Friday that his client had not yet been served with the lawsuit.

On Monday, after being served, Pena sent a statement saying that the lawsuit was baseless, that it made allegations that were "demonstrably false" and had been filed on behalf of a student-athlete who fell short of expectations as a wrestler.

"When people fall short far too often rather than taking accountability for their own shortcomings, they look to strike a blow at anyone they perceive is the reason for their failure," Pena wrote. "This is not the first time Coach Bell has been baselessly attacked and regrettably it's unlikely to be the last."

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An attorney for Spataro, Patrick Jennings, also initially threatened legal action against The Record and NorthJersey.com and said the allegations are "false, defamatory and made for an improper purpose." On Monday, he issued a brief statement denying that his client did anything wrong.

"Mr. Spataro did not engage in any improper behavior whatsoever," Jennings said in the statement. "The allegations against him are denied."

One former Bergen Catholic student who graduated several years ago said Monday night that he never witnessed any improprieties during his time at the school and praised Bell as a coach.

"I've never heard of any type of story like this," said Johnny Sebastian, a 2014 Bergen Catholic graduate who's a redshirt sophomore at Northwestern University, where he is a member of the wrestling team. "I got the blessing to be on Coach Bell’s team."

He said his "heart sank" and that he was surprised when he heard about the allegations. "I feel bad for Dave Bell," Sebastian said, adding that "he’s one of the best teachers out there.”

Other former wrestlers took to Twitter on Monday night to defend Bell and the program.

More than 2½ years ago, the school paid $1.9 million as a settlement to 21 people who said they had been victims of child sex abuse at Bergen Catholic decades earlier. The alleged abuse occurred between 1963 and 1968, and included students who were between 13 and 17 years old at the time of the alleged abuse.

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Miltenberg raised those prior allegations in a statement he issued Monday night on behalf of his client, saying that it is "horrific that Bergen Catholic has been in this position time and again, and instead of addressing the problem, it chooses to shame, intimidate and ultimately pay its victims for their silence."

The complaint alleges that Spataro showed naked photos of himself to wrestlers at the Beast of the East Tournament, which was held in Newark, Delaware, in December.

The wrestler whose family filed the suit allegedly was shown "nude pornographic photos" by Spataro during a trip to Fresno, California, for the Doc Buchanan Invitational wrestling tournament in January.

According to the lawsuit, his parents approached the school's principal, Timothy McElhinney, saying they had concerns that included a former coach being able to get access to the wrestling room despite having been let go for alleged bullying of wrestlers in 2016. The family alleges that Bell, the head coach, encouraged the former coach and Spataro to bully their son.

The wrestler's father, according to the suit, sent a certified letter to Walsh on Jan. 29 "demanding an update on his concerns of the ongoing harassment, intimidation and bullying investigation" being conducted by the school principal.

The next day, according to the complaint, Walsh said in an email to the parents that he had begun an investigation by speaking to Bell, the head coach.

The suit alleges that Walsh based his response to the parents solely on what Bell had told him. When the parents pressed the matter, the suit claims, Walsh dismissed the bullying complaint and told the father that "enough is enough."

The school president allegedly then told the family that "your son is no longer on the team."

It was not made clear in the lawsuit whether Walsh's alleged statements were made verbally or in writing.

Walsh, according to the suit, "wholly ignored the numerous emails by the Plaintiff's father, his certified letter, and in-person meeting, where he pleaded for the administration to safeguard his son's health and safety at Bergen Catholic High School."

The family claimed in the suit that their son has transferred to another school and that the defendants retaliated against him by making false statements about him that amounted to "blackballing" as he attempted to move to other Catholic high schools.

The suit claims those actions "continue to deprive Plaintiff from receiving a Christian education."

The lawsuit was initially filed on Feb. 23 and amended March 26. It was served to school officials on Monday.

It alleges that the school breached its duty to keep the wrestler safe by "exposing him and other wrestlers to pornographic photographs, inappropriate touching, massages and other inappropriate sexual acts."

The Congregation of Christian Brothers, a Roman Catholic order that runs the school, which is not named as a defendant in the lawsuit, declined to comment on Monday.

"Christian Brothers is not a defendant in this lawsuit — and, therefore, will not be issuing a statement," said Mangione, who is also a spokesman for the Christian Brothers.

The Bergen Catholic wrestling team was ranked No. 1 in the nation at one point during the 2017-18 season after a 33-19 win over Blair Academy at the Who's Number One tournament in January.

The Crusaders won the most individual titles at the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association Wrestling Championships last month with three. They've won 12 individual titles in the last four years.