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Report: Investigation raises ‘serious concerns’ about credibility of former Duxbury coach who denied sexually assaulting student
John Blake, who was a coach and gym teacher, was fired this past spring.
ALLEGATIONS IN DUXBURY:
An attorney tasked by Duxbury Public Schools with investigating sexual assault allegations against a former hockey coach said she was left with “serious concerns” about his credibility, particularly when he was asked about his relationship with the middle-school-aged student in question, as well as about a sexual relationship with another teacher.
The report, a copy of which was obtained by The Boston Globe, alleges that John Blake didn’t tell the truth when it came to discussing a sexual relationship with another teacher, and when he said he didn’t remember the student he was accused of raping.
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Joseph and Melissa Foley accused Blake of sexually assaulting their son, Parker, on multiple occasions between 2005 and 2007, and said the abuse only stopped when Parker threatened Blake with a knife, according to the newspaper.
The Foleys are seeking $1 million in a lawsuit filed in Plymouth Superior Court in March against Blake and the Duxbury Public Schools. Blake filed a counterclaim against the couple in June.
Parker died last November of an accidental drug overdose. Blake was fired in April. The high school’s athletic director, Thom Holdgate, didn’t have his contract renewed at the end of the current school year amid this and another scandal at the high school involving the football team using anti-Semitic language.
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Lawyer Regina Ryan, hired by the school district to lead the investigation, didn’t find explicit evidence of sexual abuse, but did say that Blake was not credible, the Globe reported.
“Where Parker is deceased and there are no first-hand witnesses to the alleged sexual abuse, other than Mr. Blake, Mr. Blake’s credibility in denying the allegations is critical to these findings and conclusions,” Ryan said in the report, according to the Globe. “Unfortunately, it is not that simple, as I have serious concerns regarding Mr. Blake’s credibility.”
While multiple colleagues said Blake had a sexual relationship with another teacher, who also confirmed it, he denied it. Blake also said he didn’t remember Parker Foley, the newspaper said.
“Seeing more of the detailed report, there is nothing in there that makes me question what we thought had occurred,” Joseph Foley told the Globe. “But it is like peeling back layers of an onion. When you come to learn more as you dig, you realize just how many breakdowns there were in supervision, policies and personnel.”
Read the details of the report at BostonGlobe.com.
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