17 Sexual Assault Survivors Name the University of Southern California and 3 Los Angeles Schools in Claims Spanning 30 Years of Abuse in Water Polo Sports

LOS ANGELES — The University of Southern California (USC) has been named as a defendant in lawsuits alleging that several young male athletes suffered years of sexual abuse at the hands of former water polo coach George Harris, Jr.

To date, 17 plaintiffs have come forward and filed lawsuits in Los Angeles Superior Courts, stating that they were sexually abused as minors by Harris. Harris coached at USC, Chaffey High School, Arena Continuation High School and El Segundo High School.

The plaintiffs, whose identities will not be publicly disclosed to protect their privacy, each claim that Harris used his position of power as coach, teacher and/or aquatics recruiter to manipulate, groom and sexually abuse them throughout their time in high school or college. Some were as young as 14 years old. These allegations against Harris go back as far as the 1970s, and his sexual abuse of minors continued through 2009 when he stopped coaching water polo.

In August 2023, The Carlson Law Firm filed a lawsuit on behalf of three former high school water polo players against Harris, and his employer, the El Segundo Unified School District, for alleged sexual abuse and negligence. Evidence shows that Harris’ abuse of Los Angeles area students and water polo players spanned over 30 years.

Since the initial lawsuit filing, fourteen additional sexual abuse survivors have come forward with similar claims against Harris, USC, El Segundo Unified School District, and Chaffey High School, which have resulted in additional lawsuits.

During his more than 30 years of teaching and coaching minors, Harris carried a reputation for overtly sexualized conduct during interactions with students. He allegedly used his position of influence, access to secluded areas at the schools and time alone with his male students and athletes to groom and sexually assault them.

“Based upon information and belief, there are many more male survivors of sexual abuse at the hands of Coach George Harris, Jr. that have yet to come forward,” according to Ruth Rizkalla, partner at the firm’s Manhattan Beach office. In California, sexual abuse can include but is not limited to behaviors such as:

• showing students pornography
• inappropriate discussions of sex
• sexual advances
• touching and physical abuse
• other abuses

Currently, Harris is accused of each of the abuses listed above. While minors are in the most vulnerable position for sexual abuse, claims are not limited to people who were abused while they were minor students. Young adult students who were manipulated by coaches or other personnel in positions of authority to comply with sexualized behavior or conversations may also have legal recourse.

Anyone who was exposed to inappropriate sexual behavior at the hands of George Harris Jr. or other faculty, or anyone who may have information relevant to these lawsuits should contact The Carlson Law Firm as soon as possible at 800-359-5690 to speak with one of our team members.

About The Carlson Law Firm

The Carlson Law Firm is a national law firm committed to providing exceptional legal services in the areas of personal injury, product liability, class actions, nursing home abuse, and consumer protection. The Carlson Law Firm has been successfully representing clients for 48 years with 19 locations nationwide. Our California office is in Manhattan Beach, CA.

 

Media Contact:

Shanilis Ortiz

254-526-5688

shanilis@carlsonattorneys.com

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