Former Connecticut teacher faces fourth lawsuit alleging sexual abuse ‘for over a quarter of a century’

A lawsuit filed this week against a former Connecticut teacher alleges sexual abuse occurred after his transfer from another school where similar accusations were made.

Robert Martinez, along with the Stamford Board of Education and the city of Stamford, are defendants in the lawsuit brought by a 30-year-old man who claims he was sexually abused by Martinez when he was a student at Toquam Elementary School. The plaintiff claims he sustained both physical and emotional injuries.

Martinez was involved in three other lawsuits regarding similar claims of abuse in the last several years. Former Rogers Elementary School students received a settlement of $3.25 million in 2018. Another settlement was reached last year in a separate lawsuit alleging assault from Martinez.

A third lawsuit, which was filed in April, also alleges sexual assault when Martinez was a teacher at Toquam. According to the 2018 settlement, Martinez’s abuse dates back to the 1970’s. The April lawsuit currently awaits jury trial.

“For over a quarter of a century, Robert Martinez sexually abused children in the public schools of Stamford including the Toquam School,” said Douglas Mahoney, attorney for the most recent plaintiff. “It is difficult to understand how it could have gone unnoticed for so long by the administrators and staff.”

The suit alleges Martinez kept the plaintiff after class and assaulted him from 2000 to 2004. It also claims Martinez was permitted to teach at Toquam despite reports of his behavior at Rogers.

It is not uncommon for sexual predators to move from one school to another and continue patterns of abuse.

To date, Martinez has not been charged with a crime regarding the abuse allegations.