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St. John's Military School - Violence Alleged

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wdtony:
It figures they don't want anyone talking and finding the truth...I hope to God that the judge decides against the gag order.

Very interesting client on client being in the allegations, that needs to be in there.

Froderik:
Yeah... "regulation" is really gonna do a lot.

Ursus:
The same article has also been published by the Lawrence Journal World with the title of "Military school seeks gag order in abuse lawsuit" (by Roxana Hegeman; March 16, 2012; Associated Press/Lawrence Journal World).

Comments left for this latter publication:


Ragingbear (anonymous) says... March 16, 2012 at 10:33 a.m.
We messed up and abused people. Please don't allow them to tell the rest of the world please.Made_in_China (Paul R. Getto) replies... March 16, 2012 at 3:26 p.m.
+1

© Copyright 2012 The World Company.

Ursus:
KAKE originally posted a story on the 14th (under the headline "Lawsuit Filed Against St. John's Military School - A Kansas military school is being sued by parents of cadets who say their sons were regularly abused by older students with the blessing of school officials."), choosing to update it several times rather than publish additional articles.

The most recent update involves making use of the latest AP headline for the title (re. the gag order request), along with an abbreviated subset of said text. Scroll down for the earliest version:

-------------- • -------------- • --------------

KAKE.com
Military School Seeks Gag Order In Abuse Lawsuit

The federal lawsuit was filed against St. John's Military School last week in Kansas City, Kan.

Reporter: Associated Press

UPDATE: Thursday, March 15, 2012

A Kansas military school is asking a federal judge to bar the plaintiffs and lawyers in a lawsuit alleging abuse of former cadets from talking publicly about the case.

Attorneys for St. John's Military School, in Salina, filed a motion Thursday seeking a gag order in the lawsuit by parents claiming their sons were repeatedly beaten by higher-ranking students in charge of discipline.

U.S. District Judge John Lungstrum scheduled a Tuesday hearing on the motion.

St. John's contends public discussion would prejudice its ability to get a fair trial. The school issued a statement Wednesday saying it was studying the allegations but denying the existence of a "culture of abuse."

St. John's has settled nine other lawsuits filed since 2006 alleging abuse.

UPDATE: Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Parents of four former cadets at a Kansas military school have filed a lawsuit claiming their sons were repeatedly beaten by older students who were in charge of handing out discipline to younger boys.

The federal lawsuit was filed last week in Kansas City, Kan., against St. John's Military School in Salina and the Episcopal Church. It seeks more than $75,000, plus costs and punitive damages.

The suit accuses the school and church of shirking their duties to make sure students were safe at the residential boarding school, which serves boys in sixth through 12th grades.

The plaintiffs claim the school allowed experienced students, called "Disciplinarians," to abuse students, including in the presence of faculty members.

"The school allows and encourages older students to abuse young students — physically, mentally, emotionally and sexually," the lawsuit alleges. "Although St. John's requests that students inform school personnel if beatings occur, it subsequently tells the Disciplinarians which individuals reported the beatings. It is commonly known throughout the school that if a student reports any beatings, he will suffer significant retribution."

The suit does not claim any of the four plaintiffs was sexually abused, but alleges one of the students did witness an attempted rape.

In a statement Wednesday, St. John's denied "there was culture of abuse, lack of institutional control, failure to supervise or any kind of cover-up." The school said it was investigating the allegations with its legal counsel and would file a response in court in the next several days.

Two of the plaintiffs are from Colorado, and one each is from Texas and Illinois. All are under 18 years old. Attorney Daniel Zmijewski said more students could be added later.

The Episcopal Church of the United States and the Episcopal Diocese of Kansas are named as defendants because St. John's is affiliated with the Episcopal Church.

Wednesday afternoon, the Episcopal Diocese of Kansas released a statement saying its listing as a plaintiff in the lawsuit is inaccurate.

"The inclusion of the Diocese of Kansas is a mistake, since the school is not connected to this diocese but is instead associated with the Episcopal Diocese of Western Kansas. The two dioceses are separate and distinct jurisdictions, with different bishops and different governing bodies. Our attorney has contacted the plaintiffs' attorney to inform him of this mistake and has asked him to correct the filing to remove the Episcopal Diocese of Kansas from the action."

The lawsuit claims that if students or their parents reported abuse to school officials, the information was passed to the Disciplinarians and more beatings followed.

One plaintiff who attended the school in the spring of 2011 claims he was bound, gagged and beaten by several students, and photos of the abuse were posted to Facebook. He also claimed he was forced to roll in mud, then several students urinated on him in the shower.

Another plaintiff claims he tried to leave the school and hitch-hike home, but was tracked down by several students and a ranking faculty member on a highway. He claims he was beaten, hooded and beaten again in the presence of the faculty member while being driven back to the school.

A third plaintiff said he was sent to a hospital with a broken eye socket after being kneed in the face by a ranking student.

The lawsuit claims parents whose sons claimed they were abused were told by the school that the children were exaggerating or making up stories because they wanted to go home.

Zmijewski said St. John's has settled nine such cases since 2006.

"This case is similar, the same kind of allegations," Zmijewski said. "I don't think the school is going to be shocked by this."

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

A Kansas military school is being sued by parents of cadets who say their sons were regularly abused by older students with the blessing of school officials.

The federal lawsuit was filed against St. John's Military School last week in Kansas City, Kan. It claims the school allows older students, called "Disciplinarians," to discipline younger students who step out of line.

The parents of four boys claim their sons suffered severe beatings by the Disciplinarians, and when the boys reported the abuse to school officials, the beatings got worse.

School President Andy England says he was meeting with legal counsel and the school was doing "due diligence" before responding to the lawsuit.

The lawsuit claims the school has settled nine similar abuse cases since 2006.


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Ursus:
Comments left for the above article, "Military School Seeks Gag Order In Abuse Lawsuit" (March 14/15, 2012; Associated Press/KAKE.com):

18
by Anonymous on Mar 14, 2012 at 12:18 PM
Minus the beating, this is Military School. Mental and Physical toughing is, but the beatings are wrong. Beatings are not a part of a Military School. They should be sued and there needs to be arrests made.by Zack Location: Wichita on Mar 14, 2012 at 01:20 PM
It's a military school for crying out loud. I went in right after nam & remnants of the old "brown boot" army were still in the ranks. They turned boys into men back then & yea you got your feelings hurt & sometimes an ars whoopen as needed. By God the military did not get to the point (greatest fighting force on earth) we were at years ago by wussifing the troops. You want coddling? send em to the girl scouts!by Anonymous on Mar 14, 2012 at 01:26 PM
So are the parents who sent the kid to MILITARY SCHOOL expecting them to be rocked to sleep and hugged when they do wrong. Military school is hardcore, and SHOULD be. Maybe it's the parents that need the beatings, not the kids....by Anonymous on Mar 14, 2012 at 02:35 PM in reply to
You are expressing the sadistic and brutal mind set and actions those boys experienced from their tormentors. I have no respect for you or those bullies.by anon on Mar 14, 2012 at 04:10 PM in reply to
My nephew was one of the boys represented in the earlier claims that were settled. He was BEATEN by bullies. I'm glad the academy is getting exposed again. It should never have happened in the first place.[/list]
by john Location: kansas on Mar 14, 2012 at 01:54 PM
i spent four years at st. johns 1958 - 1961. at that time it was new boys and old boys. the cadet court handled any wrong doing made by the cadets. i know what i see at the school now is nothing like it was when i graduated. the uniforms are way out of style and the ribbons are way to many. it sounds like the disipline group is getting way out of hand. the school and the cadets need to return to the way it was back in the 50's and 60's.by Anonymous on Mar 14, 2012 at 02:29 PM
why are most the kids there now. Its because the parents failed them by not believing in discipline. Had they disciplined the kids they wouldnt be there in the first placeby jeff Location: wichita on Mar 14, 2012 at 02:59 PM
even in the army, navy, and other branches of military you don't go around hitting other cadets. let the commandent of the cadets , and the cadet court handle the disciplin, not the cadets. if nthe teachers and other adults at the school are not handling the hitting of a lower cadet, then they must be removed.but i believe thqat mild form of hazing should be allowed.by S on Mar 14, 2012 at 03:04 PM
Discipline should never be given out by another student. This gives too much power to a small group that are neither experienced enough or mature enough to handle this type of power. Should there be discipline in a militar school...yes...but "beatings" are not discipline, and a school is NOT the military. These schools should be the BEST examples of how schools should be run, they should instill a sense of pride and loyalty in both school and country...do you think that is what happenened in this situation? Of course the school should be demanding...but would YOU respond to beatings? Is this what you are recommending for these students so when they leave when they haven't learned to self discipline but only respond to abuse.by john Location: kansas on Mar 14, 2012 at 03:37 PM
reply to anonymous @2.29pm. very few of the cadets are there because of being in trouble with the law or parents not believeing in discipline. i went because of the education. no more than 10 cadets in a class room, most of the teachers were military officers that lived there on the campus. also for one hour every night omitting wed and sat you had to be inyour room studing. this belief that you have is very wrong. one thing you are taught, before you can give a order, you had to learn to take a order.by Anonymous on Mar 14, 2012 at 05:27 PM in reply to john
I bet the ones involved in the suit was sent there because there parents couldnt hadle them[/list]
by Anonymous on Mar 14, 2012 at 08:33 PM
MAYBE THE PARENTS SHOULD HAVE HAD THEIR KIDS UNDER CONTROL AND THEN THEY WOULDN'T HAVE HAD TO SEND THEM TO SJMS... ITS NOT A CAKEWALK...by Anonymous on Mar 14, 2012 at 10:41 PM
This is a shame if it is true. I have a family member who went into St. John's in the early 90's. I know he was never beaten or abused there, and I just asked him (a grown man now) again tonight after reading this. When he was there, he wanted to stay longer than the original time he was given to be there. On "going home day", he told all of us several times that he wished he could stay. He enjoyed the camaraderie, the discipline (because it was done right), and the well balanced structure. It truly made him a much more responsible man than he would have been had he stayed home, and his parents dealt with him on their own. He knows that, I know that, and I hope the school rectifies this problem, and takes it back to the status it was in when he was there. I saw many bright young men, who were on a bad path going in, and they were on the right path when they went home.by Me Location: Me on Mar 15, 2012 at 12:00 AM
Chokeholdby john Location: kansas on Mar 15, 2012 at 07:56 AM
reply to anonymous mar 14 10.41 pm. very well said. that is how i felt when i went there. it's a home away from home. most of the cadets went there to get a education, but got alot more, new friends for a life time. that the way it was when i graduated in 61.by icymoon Location: the boonies on Mar 15, 2012 at 08:33 AM
Finally someone saying something friend went there n 80s always babblin to watch his back he was beaten bad he finally left go walk around campus lots of faces of abused children especially rally the lil ones
Makes me sickby me Location: wichita on Mar 15, 2012 at 11:31 AM
It is common knowledge what goes on at St John's. There are many victims and many abusers who belong to this organization and other similar organizations in Salina and elsewhere in Kansas. the school should be closed and those responsible need to be prosecuted. The school serves no legitimate purpose.by jeff Location: wichita on Mar 15, 2012 at 04:52 PM
reply to me. i don't know where you got your information. i don't believe that you went to sjms or you know any one that did. but youre facts are completely wrong. ask any former cadet that went there. the education side is one of the best in the state. go up to salina and take a tour of the campus.

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