Teh One Who Knocks
07-30-2013, 10:51 AM
By CHLOE MILLER - The Hartford Courant
WESTPORT — A 15-year-old Westport girl and her family have filed a civil lawsuit against an overnight summer camp in the Berkshire Mountains, alleging negligent supervision, breach of contract and emotional damages after the girl was expelled from the camp, allegedly for kissing a boy.
According to the lawsuit, on July 11 the girl attended a counselor-supervised activity at Camp Emerson called "court time," which is held on the basketball court and provides time for male and female campers to interact. The girl and a male camper reportedly took a moment behind the arts and crafts building to share a kiss, according to the suit.
According to the girl's lawyer, Rosemarie Arnold of Fort Lee, N.J., kissing is not against the rules at the camp. But Arnold said the girl was publicly humiliated and expelled from the camp the next morning by the camp director, Sue Lein. Her parents were called and told to pick her up at the edge of camp, where she was escorted by an armed and uniformed police officer, Arnold said.
The experience was humiliating and traumatizing for the girl as well as her 11-year-old sister, who also chose to leave the camp at that time, Arnold said.
The lawsuit seeks a refund of camp tuition for both girls (over $12,000) as well as damages of $75,000 for each of nine claims, including negligent supervision of campers and counselors, breach of contract, defamation, and emotional distress.
Camp Emerson, in Hinsdale, Mass., which says it's "not your ordinary summer camp," operates on a three-strike disciplinary policy, after which a camper will be sent home, according to the camp handbook.
The camp's code of conduct states that, "depending on the severity of the act, a camper can be sent home for the first strike." The code of conduct also prohibits "sexual relations or physical contact with another person (opposite or same sex)."
Arnold said her client, who had attended the camp for four years, maintains that the incident did not warrant immediate expulsion.
Lein, according to the suit, said the boy and girl had begun to undress and were "making out." Lein could not be reached for comment Monday.
According to the suit, Lein allegedly "screamed and yelled" at the girl in front of other campers and accused her of being "loose" and a "danger" to the camp.
Arnold also said Lein shared confidential information about the girl, telling other campers she suffers from anxiety, obsessive compulsive disorder, and low self-esteem.
"The point here is that the camp had a judiciary responsibility to care for the emotional need of this child and the other campers, and instead of doing that, they violated her sense of emotional well-being by ostracizing her for no good reason," said Arnold.
Lein has been a director at Camp Emerson since 1990.
WESTPORT — A 15-year-old Westport girl and her family have filed a civil lawsuit against an overnight summer camp in the Berkshire Mountains, alleging negligent supervision, breach of contract and emotional damages after the girl was expelled from the camp, allegedly for kissing a boy.
According to the lawsuit, on July 11 the girl attended a counselor-supervised activity at Camp Emerson called "court time," which is held on the basketball court and provides time for male and female campers to interact. The girl and a male camper reportedly took a moment behind the arts and crafts building to share a kiss, according to the suit.
According to the girl's lawyer, Rosemarie Arnold of Fort Lee, N.J., kissing is not against the rules at the camp. But Arnold said the girl was publicly humiliated and expelled from the camp the next morning by the camp director, Sue Lein. Her parents were called and told to pick her up at the edge of camp, where she was escorted by an armed and uniformed police officer, Arnold said.
The experience was humiliating and traumatizing for the girl as well as her 11-year-old sister, who also chose to leave the camp at that time, Arnold said.
The lawsuit seeks a refund of camp tuition for both girls (over $12,000) as well as damages of $75,000 for each of nine claims, including negligent supervision of campers and counselors, breach of contract, defamation, and emotional distress.
Camp Emerson, in Hinsdale, Mass., which says it's "not your ordinary summer camp," operates on a three-strike disciplinary policy, after which a camper will be sent home, according to the camp handbook.
The camp's code of conduct states that, "depending on the severity of the act, a camper can be sent home for the first strike." The code of conduct also prohibits "sexual relations or physical contact with another person (opposite or same sex)."
Arnold said her client, who had attended the camp for four years, maintains that the incident did not warrant immediate expulsion.
Lein, according to the suit, said the boy and girl had begun to undress and were "making out." Lein could not be reached for comment Monday.
According to the suit, Lein allegedly "screamed and yelled" at the girl in front of other campers and accused her of being "loose" and a "danger" to the camp.
Arnold also said Lein shared confidential information about the girl, telling other campers she suffers from anxiety, obsessive compulsive disorder, and low self-esteem.
"The point here is that the camp had a judiciary responsibility to care for the emotional need of this child and the other campers, and instead of doing that, they violated her sense of emotional well-being by ostracizing her for no good reason," said Arnold.
Lein has been a director at Camp Emerson since 1990.