New Lawsuit Filed In Kamehameha Schools Abuse Case
Sexual abuse allegations mount after the school paid an $80 million settlement agreement in 2018.
Eight more people alleged Monday that聽former Kamehameha Schools psychiatrist Dr. Robert Browne sexually molested and abused them, while other school officials looked the other way.
The civil lawsuit was filed in First Circuit Court, two years after the school reached聽an聽$80 million settlement agreement with a group of 32 survivors of Browne鈥檚 abuse from the 1970s and 鈥80s.
The latest plaintiffs said they told聽teachers, counselors, dorm advisers and administrators about the abuse, but the school officials allowed it to continue for years.
鈥淲hen Kamehameha Schools saw the warning signs and were told of ongoing sex abuse, starting as early as 1966, in the worst form of betrayal, Kamehameha Schools turned its back on the children it sent to Dr. Browne,鈥 the lawsuit said.
Among the eight plaintiffs is Duke Kahanamoku Paoa, the nephew of Olympian swimmer and surfer Duke Kahanamoku.
This is the latest in a series of lawsuits against Browne, who died by suicide in 1991 after a student confronted him about past sexual abuse.
鈥淲e appreciate the strength and courage it takes for survivors to come forward,” Kamehameha Schools spokesman Darren Pai said in an email statement. “We are very sorry for past abuses suffered by Dr. Browne鈥檚 patients and will continue to uphold our commitment to do what is right for survivors. We have been working, and will continue to work, on resolving these cases.鈥
Browne, who was the school psychiatrist for 27 years, did not physically work at the school. Instead, students were transported to his office at the St. Francis Medical Center, according to several lawsuits detailing his alleged abuse.
During purported therapy sessions, students would be forced to perform sexual acts, sometimes with other male observers, the suit alleged.
鈥淭he injuries suffered by the eight plaintiffs at the hands of Dr. Browne have haunted them for their entire lives,鈥 said Mark Davis, an attorney in the case.
The plaintiffs are not only seeking reparation for their own injuries but want the school to be held accountable for failing to stop the abuse, he added.
