Arizona lawmaker claims sexual abuse by coach at RI school

RHODE ISLAND
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April 24, 2018

An Arizona congresswoman claims she was sexually abused by a track coach at a Catholic school in Rhode Island.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Rep. Martha McSally, a native of Warwick, said she was abused by her track coach at St. Mary Academy – Bay View in East Providence in the early 1980s when she was 17.

The WSJ identified the coach as Jack Dwyer and said he denied the allegations.

“We are saddened by these allegations, and we are committed to confronting issues of misconduct and abuse, irrespective of when the incident occurred. Nothing is more important than the safety of our students,” Bay View said in a statement released Tuesday.

“As a Mercy school committed to the empowerment, safety, and well-being of our students, both past, and present, we have a special obligation to address matters of sexual violence,” the school said.

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