SGT in the News: SGT's client reaches tentative deal in Wilton schools child sex abuse case

August 30, 2022

As reported by J.D. Freda of the Wilton Bulletin on August 28, 2022, SGT's clients have reached a tentative settlement resolving their claims against the Town of Wilton and the Wilton Board of Education arising out of alleged sexual abuse committed by a former Wilton school paraprofessional. The now-settled lawsuit is among three complaints filed against the town related to allegations involving former Miller-Driscoll School paraprofessional Eric Von Kohorn. The 2016 lawsuit alleged Von Kohorn sexually exploited a then 4-year-old boy by taking photographs of him with his pants down in the bathroom during the 2013-14 school year.

“I can confirm that the Town of Wilton and the Doe family have reached an agreement in principle to settle claims arising from alleged sexual abuse and exploitation on school property of the preschool student by Eric Von Kohorn, a paraprofessional at the Miller-Driscoll School,” said Paul A. Slager, the attorney representing the family, who is from the law firm Silver Golub & Teitell LLP.

The lawsuit filed by the boy’s family argued the Wilton Board of Education and school staff should not have let Von Kohorn work closely with the child and take him into the school bathrooms alone because they knew of allegations involving a 4-year old girl the previous year. The lawsuit also claimed Von Kohorn was interviewed twice about the incident with the female student, in which he admitted he originally lied about taking her into the bathroom alone. The lawsuit argued proper steps were not taken to prevent Von Kohorn from working with Miller-Driscoll students after the 2013 allegations.

Von Kohorn, who worked at Miller-Driscoll from 2007 to June 2014, was sentenced in 2015 to two years in prison after pleading guilty in an unrelated incident for second-degree possession of child pornography for having video files saved to his laptop depicting minors engaged in sexual activity.

The tentative settlement amount was not disclosed, and Wilton BOE Chairwoman Deb Low did not return a request for comment.

The Wilton Bulletin story can be found here: Boy’s family reaches tentative deal in Wilton schools child sex abuse case.