RyeCity REVIEW THE
June 12, 2020 | Vol. 8, Number 23 | www.eastchesterreview.com
More accusers come forward in Gaynor case By MIKE SMITH Sports Editor
Hail to the graduates Some graduates in the area will be able to experience graduation ceremonies after a new ruling by the governor. For more, see page 3
Westchester County reopening plan takes next step Westchester County will begin Phase 2 reopening under Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s New York Forward reopening plan on Tuesday, June 9, as it continues to recover from the COVID-19 epidemic. Businesses that will be able to begin reopening in Phase 2 are: • Offices • Real Estate • Certain In-Store Retail • Vehicle Sales, Leases and Rentals • Retail Rental, Repair and Cleaning • Commercial Building Management • Hair Salons and Barbershops • Outdoor and Take-Out/ Delivery Food Services
Safety mandates will continue to be in place for each of these industries. For example, in Phase 2, offices must limit occupancy to a maximum of 50 percent, maintain a minimum of 6 feet of distance among individuals, and, if a six-foot distance cannot be maintained, acceptable face coverings must be worn. A full list of mandatory and recommended practices are available on an industry-by-industry basis at https://forward.ny.gov/ phase-two-industries. Pursuant to the governor’s executive orders, the following businesses remain closed:
Indoor Malls—however, any stores without their own external entrances may continue to operate via curbside pickup as in Phase 1 • Indoor on-premise restaurant and bar service • Large gathering/event venues • Gyms, fitness centers, and exercise classes, except for remote or streaming services • Video lottery and casino gaming facilities • Movie theaters, except drive-ins • Places of public amusement, whether indoors or outdoors, including but not limited to, locations with amusement rides, carnivals, amusement parks,
water parks, aquariums, zoos, arcades, fairs, children’s play centers, funplexes, theme parks, bowling alleys, family and children’s attractions. As with Phase 1, reopening businesses must develop a written safety plan outlining how the business will prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the workplace. Industry-specific safety plan templates for Phase 2 businesses are available at https://forward. ny.gov/phase-two-industries. For more information and guidance about the New York State phased reopening plan, please visit: https://forward. ny.gov. (Submitted)
Three more accusers have come forward against Edwin Gaynor as sexual abuse allegations against the former teacher and coach at the Immaculate Heart of Mary Church in Scarsdale continue to mount, the Review has learned.On May 28, the law firm of Lowey Dannenberg, PC, filed lawsuits on behalf of Gregory Morra and George Orteig who both allege that Gaynor, now 85, molested them when he was an employee of IHM in the 1960s. Another accuser, who is operating under the condition of anonymity, filed a subsequent suit on June 5, bringing the total number of accusers to 17. Both IHM and the Archdiocese of New York are named as co-defendants in each of the 17 cases for their alleged failure to protect students from sexual abuse. The initial lawsuit was filed in November 2019. The plaintiffs in all three of allege that the recent cases Gaynor used his position as a youth basketball coach to groom them for sexual abuse. Morra— an Eastchester native—served as assistant on the 1966 IHM CYO basketball team when he was 10 years old and claims that Coach Gaynor sexually assaulted him several times during the course of the basketball season, sometimes in front of other players. “Gaynor would molest Plaintiff Morra in his office before or after games, sometimes there were classmates on the other side of the desk and sometimes Gaynor would molest Morra with no one else present,” the suit reads. “On one occasion, Plaintiff Morra witnessed another classmate getting molested; Morra remembers feeling relieved he was not molested that day.” The June 5 filing also included an anonymous plaintiff identified as HCVAWCR-DOE who lev-
eled similar allegations against Gaynor and alleged that knowledge of the sexual abuse was widespread among Gaynor’s students and players. “The fact that his classmates all teased and joked about Gaynor and had names for what Gaynor did was highly confusing. The boys schemed to avoid being the last one left in Gaynor’s office,” the court filing states. “Plaintiff was deeply confused about this open secret and the fact that everyone seemed to know and Gaynor was allowed free rein over the boys with absolute authority over their precious sports teams, gym class, playing times, camp and entire athletic experience.” Gaynor has already admitted to two of the allegations of sexual abuse, providing written testimony regarding his physical interactions with plaintiffs David Pisula and R.L. On March 3, the Archdiocese of New York filed a motion to have Gaynor’s admissions stricken from the record, arguing that his testimony should not be admissible evidence in the other 12—at the time—cases. In the motion, attorneys from Rivkin Radler LLP, who are representing the archdiocese, argued that including these two admissions of guilt as evidence in the other cases were “irrelevant” and “scandalous.” “This is done for the sole purpose of inflaming and unduly influencing a jury to the detriment of the Defendants,” the filing reads. In a May 18 response to the motion, counsel for the plaintiffs countered that Gaynor’s written testimony was material in establishing a decades-long timeline of abuse that was ignored by his co-defendants.No ruling on the motion has been reached as of press time. Contact: sports@hometwn.com