Community, Education, News, Sports

Defendants’ motion denied in IHM sex abuse case

A Feb. 14 ruling by the Supreme Court of New York has paved the way for the deposition of Edwin “Ted” Gaynor, a former teacher at the Immaculate Heart of Mary School in Scarsdale who has been accused of multiple accounts of sexual assault. Gaynor’s upcoming testimony could prove illuminating in a lawsuit filed under the Child Victims Act that also names IHM and the Archdiocese of New York as defendants.

In the last three months, Edwin Gaynor, a former IHM teacher and coach, has been accused of sexual assault by 13 former students, dating back to the 1960s. Gaynor’s handwritten letters appear to confirm at least some of the allegations. Photo/Mike Smith

On Friday, Feb. 14, New York Supreme Court Associate Justice Hon. Steven M. Jaeger denied motions filed by both the Archdiocese and IHM that sought to quash Gaynor’s testimony on the basis of the defendant’s competency, writing that “[t]he Court finds that the record before fails to reveal any competent evidence indicating that Gaynor is incapable of adequately prosecuting or defending his rights. The fact that his statements are not in the interests of the co-Defendants is not proof that he cannot understand these proceedings and adequately defend his own interests.”

The ruling stated that the deposition of Gaynor, 84, is to be held no later than March 27 in White Plains.

Since November of 2019, 13 plaintiffs have come forward to accuse Gaynor of sexually abusing minors in a time period that stretched from the 1959 to 1986. The Archdiocese of New York and IHM—where Gaynor was employed as a physical education teacher and a coach—are named in the suit for failing to address allegations against the teacher and allowing the abuse to continue.

Gaynor was originally scheduled to give testimony on Jan. 30, but motions filed on Jan. 27, by attorneys representing IHM and the Archdiocese of New York led to a temporary stay, as the two other defendants asked the courts for a hearing to determine Gaynor’s competency to adequately defend his rights.

Oral arguments regarding the need for a competency hearing were held on Feb. 6 in Mineola, New York. The defendant’s poor health and mental acuity were among the issues at hand, as were a number of handwritten letters Gaynor has sent since the original lawsuit was filed in November.

Gaynor, who does not have legal representation, admitted to sexually abusing two of the accusers in several communiqués he mailed to the law offices of Lowey Dannenberg P.C., the firm representing the plaintiffs, in December 2019.

But he has denied several other allegations in a Jan. 26 letter.

Attorneys for the Archdiocese argued that the letters sent by Gaynor over the last three months—many of which included references to the defendant’s poor health—were “definitive evidence that Gaynor is likely incompetent to testify.”

Jaeger’s ruling disagreed with the defendants’ characterization of these letters, however.

“The Court’s review of the contents of all the letters from Gaynor to the Court and Plaintiff’s counsel, on the other hand, supports a finding that Gaynor understands the nature of these proceedings and the claims made against him,” the ruling stated. “Significantly, he exhibits recollection of the facts from over 50 years ago such that he corrects the alleged dates of the sexual abuse and differentiates between the various plaintiffs as to those that he expressly admits molesting and others with whom he expressly denies having any improper contact.”

No date has been set for Gaynor’s deposition.