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CASE NO:
V. S., a minor child, by and through her Parent
and Natural Guardian, N.K.,
Plaintiff,
v.
Defendants.
_______________________________________/
COMPLAINT
Plaintiff V. S., a minor child, by and through her Parent and Natural Guardian, N.K., hereby
sues Defendants Diocese of Palm Beach, Inc., a Florida not for profit corporation, d/b/a All Saints
Catholic School, and P. Jill Hambrook Broz, an individual, and alleges the following:
1. This is a suit for child abuse and for negligence which were committed in Palm
any claim for attorney’s fees, interest, or costs, and therefore this claim is within the jurisdiction
of this Court.
3. V.S. is a minor child, a resident and citizen of the state of Florida and Palm Beach
County, who at the time of the abuses and sexual abuses she suffered as more fully described
4. N.K. is the parent and natural guardian of V.S., with full parental rights as to V.S.,
including the right to bring this suit on behalf of and in the name of V.S., to redress personal
5. Pursuant to Florida law, due to V.S.’s status as a minor child, she is filing this action
6. Pursuant to Florida Law and the Rules of this Court, including Rule 2.420 (c), of
the Fla. R. Jud. Admin., as a survivor of child abuse and child sexual abuse, Plaintiff V.S. is
identified by her initials only. Likewise, her parent N.K. is identified by initials only, as disclosure
Saints Catholic”) is a Florida not for profit corporation, maintaining its principal place of business
in Palm Beach County, Florida, and does business in part as All Saints Catholic School, pursuant
to a registered fictitious name. Under that fictitious name, this Defendant operates All Saints
Catholic School as a private school for pre-kindergarten through eighth grade students at a campus
Broz”) is an individual who is now and at all pertinent times was a citizen of Florida and an
employee of All Saints Catholic, specifically employed in the capacity as the school’s principal.
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FACTS APPLICABLE TO ALL COUNTS
9. At the time of the events at issue herein, V.S. was an unemancipated minor under
10. V.S. was an enrolled student at All Saints Catholic School at all pertinent times of
11. In and about January through March 2020, V.S. was subjected to sexual abuse on
multiple occasions in a classroom at All Saints Catholic School; the abuse was perpetrated by a
peer (hereafter sometimes referred to as “the Abusive Peer”) when classes were left unattended by
the teacher assigned to the classroom and while no other adults were present to monitor for,
12. The abuse inflicted on V.S. by the Abusive Peer in or about January through March,
2020, was a direct, proximate and foreseeable result of the Defendant All Saints Catholic’s
negligent violations of law and breaches of the applicable standards of care, including without
necessary limitation:
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13. In late February 2020, the sexual abuses that V.S. suffered, inflicted by the Abusive
Peer, were reported to law enforcement and child welfare authorities, which commenced
14. The sexual abuses suffered by V.S. at the hands of the Abusive Peer resulted in
severe mental health trauma to V.S., adverse developmental impact, and development of severe
mental health distress and disorders, including post-traumatic stress disorder, and aggravation of
15. Notwithstanding having been informed of the sexual abuses and the resulting
impact on V.S.’s mental health, including her need for and receipt of professional mental health
care interventions, Defendants failed to ensure that V.S. was then insulated from contact in the
school environment with the Abusive Peer and with his cohorts, who as a proximate result engaged
in foreseeable, ongoing bullying and retaliatory acts that had the intended and actual consequences
of denigrating and further humiliating V.S. among her peer group as a whole, including accusing
her of making a false report of the abuse and/or of welcoming the sexual acts perpetrated against
her.
16. Defendants otherwise failed to react to the ongoing bullying of V.S. by her peers,
17. The retaliatory bullying and abuses suffered by V.S. by the Abusive Peer and his
cohorts resulted in further severe mental health trauma to V.S., adverse developmental impact, and
development of severe mental health distress and disorders, including post-traumatic stress
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18. In conjunction with the ongoing harms suffered by V.S., including the harm from
the failure of Defendants to provide for her protection and safety in the school environment in the
peers that Defendant Broz knew were directly symptomatic of the sexual abuse and the ongoing
exposure to the Abusive Peer and the related ongoing bullying and retaliation in the school
environment.
mental health disorders, and without first advising or consulting with V.S.’s parents or mental
health care providers, Defendant Broz required V.S. to write an essay confessing to her
maladaptive social behaviors, which included her own recognition that her actions were induced
by the abuses she had suffered, and taking inordinate and unfair responsibility for the symptoms
V.S.’s parents or V.S.’s mental health care providers, Defendant Broz provided V.S.’s written
essay containing and revealing her confidential and sensitive mental health information to certain
of V.S.’s peers and parents of her peers. The private and medical information about V.S. contained
therein was then foreseeably and proximately disseminated widely among V.S.’s peer group, thus
foreseeably and proximately inflicting on V.S. extreme humiliation, betrayal of privacy and other
V.S.’s parents or V.S.’s mental health care providers, Defendant Broz suspended V.S. from school
for her maladaptive social behaviors that were rooted in her mental health trauma induced
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disability, thus foreseeably and proximately inflicting on V.S. extreme humiliation for suffering
from a trauma-induced mental health disorder and other severe adverse emotional and mental
V.S.’s parents or V.S.’s mental health care providers, Defendant Broz informed V.S.’s peers and
parents of those peers that V.S. was suspended from school for her maladaptive social behaviors,
thus foreseeably and proximately inflicting on V.S. extreme humiliation, betrayal of privacy and
other severe adverse emotional and mental health impact and impairment.
avoidably inflicted on V.S. significant and foreseeable harm and impairment to her mental and
emotional health.
emotional and mental abuse of a child within the meaning of Florida Statutes section 39.01(2), to
wit, in pertinent part, “any willful act … that results in any … mental … injury, or harm that causes
19. Defendant All Saints Catholic and Defendant Broz engaged in the following actions
to the obvious detriment of V.S.’s mental health that, on information and belief, were motivated
out of a desire to extend undue favor the Abusive Peer because his parents are long-time and
repeated substantial financial donors to the school itself and several charities connected to the
Diocese of Palm Beach, Inc.,, while V.S.’s parents are not of such means, thus favoring the
Diocese’s financial interests over V.S.’s welfare and recklessly risking likely harm and impairment
to V.S.’s mental and emotional health and ultimately inflicting that damage:
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a. By failing to take disciplinary action against the Abusive Peer, including
suspension or expulsion that were mandated by the school’s published policies in its “Discipline
Plan” requiring such consequences for the repeated acts of sexual misconduct and bullying that he
committed against V.S. Instead, he was promptly returned to the classroom with V.S. without any
discernable consequence.
b. By taking disciplinary action against V.S. in the form of essay writing and
suspension for her trauma-induced and mental health disability-based adverse social behaviors
described above, while the “Discipline Plan” called for a sanction of nothing more than a detention.
referenced essay to her peers and their parents, while no such action was taken against the peer
certification that V.S. could safely return to school after exhibiting her maladaptive social
behaviors, while imposing no such certification requirement for the Abusive Peer who sexually
abused and preyed upon V.S. to return not just to the school, but the same classroom as V.S.
assignments when her parents demanded that the Abusive Peer be removed from the same
classroom as her, rather than remove him as a consequence of his criminal offenses towards V.S.
f. During the police investigation of the sex crimes committed against V.S. by
her peer, Defendant Broz did attempt to delay and prevent the police from interviewing the
Abusive Peer on campus on February 28, 2020, by informing the police when they arrived that she
had been instructed that he could only be interviewed with his attorney present. In fact, neither he
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nor his parents had retained an attorney for him as of that date and none was contemplated to be
20. Portions of the misconduct detailed herein are sufficient to warrant the imposition
of punitive damages and Plaintiff therefore states her intent to seek leave to amend this Complaint
pursuant to Fla. Stat. sec. 768.72 to seek punitive damages upon the development of record
COUNT I
NEGLIGENCE BY ALL SAINTS CATHOLIC
AS TO PEER ON PEER SEXUAL ABUSE
21. Plaintiff realleges and incorporates into this Count the Facts Applicable to All
22. The Defendant All Saints Catholic owed to Plaintiff a duty to maintain her safety
while in its custody and care, including her safety from peer-on-peer sexual abuse.
23. Defendant All Saints Catholic’s staff members, employees or other agents breached
the duty owed to Plaintiff while acting within the course and scope of their employment and/or
agency with the Defendant at the time and under the circumstances delineated herein in which they
acted, or failed to act, in accord with the law and applicable standards of care for the safety of
24. At all times material hereto, Defendant All Saints Catholic was responsible and
vicariously liable for the negligent acts or omissions of its employees or agents acting within the
25. Defendant All Saints Catholic breached its duty to Plaintiff by not safeguarding
against, supervising for, intervening in or otherwise preventing the sexual abuse that she suffered
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26. As a direct, proximate and foreseeable result of Defendant All Saints Catholic’s
negligence, V.S. has suffered in the past, at present and will suffer into the future bodily and mental
health harm, pain and suffering, disability, mental anguish, aggravation of pre-existing mental
health conditions and harm, loss of capacity for the enjoyment of life, and expenses for mental
health and medical treatment, including hospitalization, medical and nursing care, medicines and
mental health treatment. The losses are either permanent or continuing in nature and Plaintiff will
Beach, Inc., for compensatory damages, costs, and all other such relief as the Court may deem just
and proper.
COUNT II
CHILD ABUSE AGAINST DEFENDANT BROZ
27. Plaintiff realleges and incorporates into this Count the Facts Common to All Counts
alleged above.
29. Plaintiff was subjected to emotional and mental abuse of a minor by Defendant
Broz.
30. Defendant Broz acted with knowledge or reckless disregard to Plaintiff’s mental
health when she engaged in the acts set forth in paragraph 18 above.
31. As a direct and proximate result, Plaintiff V.S.. has suffered in the past, at present
and will suffer into the future bodily and mental health harm, pain and suffering, disability, mental
anguish, aggravation of pre-existing mental health conditions and harm, loss of capacity for the
enjoyment of life, and expenses for mental health and medical treatment, including hospitalization,
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medical and nursing care, medicines and mental health treatment. The losses are either permanent
or continuing in nature and Plaintiff will suffer such losses in the future.
WHEREFORE, Plaintiff demands judgment against Defendant P. Jill Hambrook Broz for
all damages available at law, as well as such other and further relief as the Court deems just and
COUNT III
NEGLIGENCE BY ALL SAINTS CATHOLIC
AS TO CHILD ABUSE COMMITTED BY DEFENDANT BROZ
32. Plaintiff realleges and incorporates into this Count the Facts Applicable to All
33. Defendant All Saints Catholic owed to Plaintiff a duty to maintain her safety while
in its custody and care, including her safety from being subjected to responses and reactions to
complaints of peer-on-peer abuse by school officials, including its principal, Defendant Broz, by
providing proper training, policies, procedures and monitoring of those responses and reactions.
34. Defendant All Saints Catholic’s staff members, employees or other agents breached
the duty owed to Plaintiff while acting within the course and scope of their employment and/or
agency with the Defendant at the time and under the circumstances delineated herein in which they
acted, or failed to act, in accord with the law and applicable standards of care for the safety of
children, like V.S., placed into their care, to prevent and guard against improper responses and
reactions to complaints of peer-on-peer abuse that risked likely harm and impairment to mental
35. Defendant All Saints Catholic breached its duty to Plaintiff by not safeguarding
against, supervising for, intervening in or otherwise preventing the harm inflicted by Defendant
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36. As a direct, proximate and foreseeable result of Defendant All Saints Catholic’s
negligence, V.S. has suffered in the past, at present and will suffer into the future bodily and mental
health harm, pain and suffering, disability, mental anguish, aggravation of pre-existing mental
health conditions and harm, loss of capacity for the enjoyment of life, and expenses for mental
health and medical treatment, including hospitalization, medical and nursing care, medicines and
mental health treatment. The losses are either permanent or continuing in nature and Plaintiff will
Beach, Inc., for compensatory damages, costs, and all other such relief as the Court may deem just
and proper.
COUNT IV
VICARIOUS LIABILITY AGAINST ALL SAINTS CATHOLIC
AS TO CHILD ABUSE COMMITTED BY DEFENDANT BROZ
37. Plaintiff realleges and incorporates into this Count the Facts Common to All Counts
alleged above.
38. At all material times, Defendant Broz was an actual employee and agent of All
Saints Catholic.
39. All Saints Catholic is vicariously liable for the torts committed by Defendant Broz
40. Defendant Jill Broz committed tortious conduct against V.S. and that conduct was
engaged in within the scope of her agency and/or job duties for All Saints Catholic as its school
principal overseeing, directing and administering discipline and sanctions for student misconduct
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41. As a direct and proximate result of Defendant Jill Broz’s tortious conduct described
in paragraph 18 above, Plaintiff suffered, continues to suffer and will continue to suffer into the
future from severe physical and mental pain and harm, psychological and psychiatric trauma and
ailments and conditions co-morbid to trauma, aggravation of pre-existing mental health conditions,
emotional distress, embarrassment, diminished self-esteem, disgrace, humiliation, other pain and
suffering, loss of income and ability to earn an income, loss of ability for the enjoyment of life,
Inc., for all damages available at law, as well as such other and further relief as the Court deems
Plaintiff hereby demands a trial by jury of all issues so triable in this case.
Respectfully submitted,
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