Ex mayor Wayne Richards named in Port Macquarie High School sex case
A former mayor has been named in a lawsuit taken against the state by one of former Port Macquarie High School students, who has alleged he abused his position of power and preyed upon her sexually when she was a naive and impressionable student in 1980.
NSW
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A respected former politician has been named as part of a group of teachers who allegedly groomed and sexually preyed upon their students at Port Macquarie High School in the 1980s.
Wayne Richards was a local statesman who transitioned from a career as an English teacher at the Mid North Coast High School to serving a term as Port Macquarie’s mayor from 1998.
Richards died in the early 2000s from lymphoma. His contribution to the community was recognised with the naming of Port Macquarie’s “Wayne Richards Park”, which features sports fields and a stadium.
Now he has been named in a lawsuit taken against the state by one of his former students, who has alleged he abused his position of power and preyed upon her sexually when she was a naive and impressionable student in 1980.
The woman is one of three female students who have launched separate civil court cases against a number of their former teachers at the school who allegedly abused their positions of authority, trust and control over the girls to form sexual relationships.
They allege at the time a culture of sexual grooming — where teachers would invite underage female students to boozy social functions and ply them with alcohol — was an open secret in certain sections of the school.
Each of the women has launched legal action in Coffs Harbour District Court against the State of NSW, claiming the schools were negligent in failing to prevent the alleged sexual grooming.
A number are also suing the individual teachers as well. Several of these teachers have passed away and none have been charged with criminal wrongdoing.
Solicitor Mandy Mackenzie, from Scott Mackenzie Lawyers, is representing the women and claimed the initial cases were likely to unearth an alleged entrenched culture of sexual grooming at the school.
“These initial proceedings are the first of many that will follow,” Ms Mackenzie said.
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In their documents filed with the court, the women said they have been plagued by depressive illnesses, suicide attempts and drug addiction.
According to the documents filed with the court, one of the women claims Richards was an English teacher at the school in 1980 when he allegedly targeted her.
In her statement of claim, the woman said Richards invited her to a social gathering at an apartment attended by several other teachers from the school in about October 1980.
There, she alleges he supplied her with alcohol and led her to an empty bedroom where she succumbed to his “persistent pressure” to engage in sexual activity.
The woman alleges in the documents that ten days later, Richards invited her to his home where they kissed.
In November 1980, the woman alleges Richards drove her from his home to a pub where he supplied her with alcohol. She then alleges that he drove her back to her home where they had sex.
After this occasion, the woman said in the documents that she never saw Richards again.
In the years since, the woman claims the alleged events had left her suffering post traumatic stress disorder. She also claimed to have become addicted to drugs and suffered depression.
She is suing the State of NSW claiming the school did nothing to prevent her from being allegedly preyed upon.
Further, she alleges other teachers knew about an alleged culture of sexual grooming but did nothing to stop it.
According to her claim, one of those teachers was allegedly Brian Sams, who is also the subject of one of the lawsuits.
A second woman is suing the state claiming Sams groomed her for a sexual relationship in 1980 and 1981 while he was a teacher at the school.
The woman was suing Sams personally, and he had filed a defence in the court, but he died earlier this year.
This was around the time that the State of NSW filed a cross claim against Sams. The effect of this would have seen the state pursue Sams personally for damages if the woman’s case was successful.
A third woman has filed a case against teacher Wayne Bourke who she alleges groomed her for sex in 1981 when she was a 17-year-old student and he was a social sciences teacher.
Mr Bourke is yet to file a defence with the court and could not be reached for comment yesterday.
It is not the first time a former teacher from the school has been at the centre of controversy.
In September, Keith Heap — a teacher at the school in the 1980s — was had his life membership revoked from Port Macquarie Golf Club and was expelled as club captain after it emerged he had been convicted in 1997 of child prostitution offences.