Court overturns $12 million sex abuse verdict against Boy Scouts
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HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) - The Connecticut Supreme Court has overturned a $12 million jury verdict against the Boy Scouts of America in the case of a boy who alleged he was sexually assaulted by an older boy in his troop in the mid-1970s.
Justices ordered a new trial in a split decision Monday, saying the trial judge improperly denied a defense request to instruct jurors on negligence liability.
The plaintiff is known only as John Doe in court documents. He alleged he was sexually abused three times beginning when he was 11 by an older Scout in Troop 137 in New Fairfield.
A jury agreed with Doe's claims that Boy Scouts of America failed to protect him from the abuse. The $12 million verdict was the largest ever against the Irving, Texas-based Boy Scouts.