Chappaqua: Student 'recklessness' to blame in sex case
District claims in court papers that alleged victims of ex-Horace Greeley teacher were careless, reckless and negligent
The Horace Greeley High School students who are suing the school district over alleged sexual abuse by a former teacher only have themselves to blame, Chappaqua school officials charge in court papers.
Attorneys for the Chappaqua Central School District said that any harm suffered by four students, all of whom were 15 at the time they claim they were abused by ex-drama teacher Christopher Schraufnagel, was "caused or contributed to by reason of the carelessness, recklessness, negligence and/or assumption of the risk, both implied and expressed, of the plaintiffs."
School officials denied any responsibility and said Schraufnagel, and not the district, "will be wholly or partially responsible," according to papers filed in state Supreme Court in White Plains.
The revelation comes nine months after Schraufnagel was originally charged with various crimes related to the case. Prosecutors say the case has not been presented to a grand jury yet.
The latest case filed brings to the forefront yet more lurid details in the case, with a new legal claim against Schraufnagel that accuses him of asking a student for oral sex, pressuring him to engage in sexual acts, and requesting that inappropriate photos be emailed or texted to him.
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In papers filed Friday in White Plains, a fourth student said Schraufnagel "was drinking alcohol and intoxicated during teaching hours," asked the student "to engage in various sexual acts," and asked the teen "to perform oral sex on him."
The claim comes in the wake of a lawsuit filed in May by three other former students who allege that Schraufnagel "engaged in sexual acts" with students and forced them to play secret games called "Train Wreck" and "Sick Secret Santa."
In the new claim, the fourth student said that Schraufnagel asked to perform oral sex on the student and "repeatedly" asked him to perform sexual acts. He said Schraufnagel also asked the teenager to photograph his genitals and send him the photo. The student is asking Supreme Court Justice Joan Lefkowitz to let him join in the earlier lawsuit with the other students.
Attorneys for Schraufnagel and the school district did not return calls. Officials at the Chappaqua school board said in an email that the board does not comment on pending litigation.
NOTE: Brian Henderson, the attorney for the school district, replied to inquiries from The Journal News/lohud on Wednesday, two days after this report was published online. Henderson said in an email that "neither my office nor the Chappaqua Central School District will comment regarding any pending litigation."
David Engelsher, the attorney for the students, declined to discuss the case on Monday.
But in court papers filed Friday, Engelsher said the district's response to the lawsuit was "a textbook example of simply throwing dreck against the wall and hoping something sticks."
Schraufnagel, 41, was charged in October with one felony count of third-degree criminal sex act and six misdemeanor counts, two of endangering the welfare of a child and four charges of third-degree sexual abuse. Police said all of the students were 15 at the time of the alleged incidents, between 2011 and last year.
Schraufnagel was placed on paid leave during the summer of 2015, and resigned his job in September after 12 years of teaching. He pleaded not guilty at his arraignment.
Twitter: @jfitzgibbon