New Sex Abuse Allegations Against Late Red Sox Clubhouse Manager
BOSTON (CBS) - Two men are accusing the Red Sox late clubhouse manager Donald Fitzpatrick of sexual assault in 1991 and they're seeking $5 million in damages each.
WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Ben Parker reports.
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Fitzpatrick was accused of molesting at least nine boys when he was the Red Sox clubhouse manager between 1971 and 1991.
All of those incidents took place at the Sox spring training facility in Florida.
WBZ-TV's Jack Williams reports.
But one of the two men who just came forward, Charles Crawford, claims Fitzpatrick assaulted him inside a Fenway Park bathroom in 1991.
"I would like an apology (from the Red Sox), first off, because we went through a lot. I dunno, maybe they can do something for other kids that have went through something like this," said Crawford.
It is the first time Fitzpatrick is accused of assaulting boys inside the Red Sox clubhouse.
Fitzpatrick died in 2005 at the age of 76 while serving a ten-year prison sentence.
The Red Sox settled a $3.15 million lawsuit in 2003 with seven men who alleged that Fitzpatrick molested them during spring training and Fitzpatrick pleaded guilty to attempted sexual battery.
Attorney Mitchell Garabedian represents Crawford and the second man in the new allegations.
"The statute of limitations have expired criminally and civilly with regard to these matters and my clients are looking for the Red Sox to do the right, moral thing here and send a message that children should be protected and pedophiles should be accounted for," Garabedian told WBZ NewsRadio 1030 Monday.
The second man, a former ball boy, claims he was molested in Fitzpatrick's car.
The two men are planning to meet with team officials this week.
"The Red Sox have always viewed the actions of Mr. Fitzpatrick to be abhorrent,'' the club's legal counsel, Daniel Goldberg, said in a prepared statement to the Boston Globe.
"When the team, then under a previous ownership group, became aware of the allegations against Mr. Fitzpatrick in 1991, he was promptly relieved of his duties.
"The club is unaware of any specifics regarding the matters brought forward recently by two individuals,'' Goldberg said.
