Richard J. Curl

Former university swimming and diving coach Rick Curl was sentenced to seven years in prison on May 23 for sexually abusing an underage girl, whom he had previously coached, over a five-year period in the 1980s.

Curl began abusing Kelley Davies Currin, now 43, when she was 13 and continued to do so until she left for college.

During the course of the trial, documents arose showing this university was made aware of Curl’s sexual abuse of Currin in 1988, sparking criticism over how the university initially handled the situation.  

The university hired Curl, who coached at a prominent local swim club, in August 1987, after he stopped abusing Currin, multiple news sources reported.

Currin’s parents initially learned of their daughter’s sexual encounters with her swim coach in 1986 after reading through several entries in her journal. The parents confronted Curl, who admitted to his misconduct and signed a confession letter, dated July 26, 1986, that outlined the abuse.

When they heard Curl was hired at the university, Currin’s parents approached university officials in summer 1988 about the issue and handed over Curl’s signed confession letter to then-athletic director Lew Perkins. Upon receiving the information about his crime, the university demanded Curl’s resignation, which was officially tendered on Aug. 24, 1988.

But the controversy concerning the university today centers on what its administration did or did not do after Curl signed his resignation.

Although university spokesman Brian Ullmann declined to comment, court documents released during the trial, including handwritten notes from a phone conversation, show the university’s legal counsel consulted with an assistant attorney general on Sept. 7, 1988, and the group concluded  no further reporting was necessary because Currin was then 19 and no longer a minor.  

Today, universities have a legal obligation to report any instances of sexual abuse, but the law was different in 1988. Until 1993, it was not obligatory to report any abuse, alleged or confirmed, if the victim was older than 18 at the time of reporting.

It was not until Currin came forward with her story in 2012 that criminal charges were pursued against Curl.

This university first published its procedures on sexual assault and misconduct in 1995 and has continued to update the document, as recently as one year ago.

The opening text of the document states, “The University will not tolerate sexual assault, sexual harassment, or any form of sexual misconduct.” The document goes on to state that any formal reporting of sexual crimes will be referred to law enforcement and all appropriate state laws apply.