BUFFALO (NY)
Buffalo News
July 12, 2020
By Stephen T. Watson
Nancy Shirley Peters met Dr. Robert J. Herzog, a family friend, back in the early 1970s when she was hired to babysit his children.
After about a year, during moments when they were alone, Herzog began telling her how much he cared for her, kissing and groping her and suggesting he could teach her how to enjoy sex, according to Peters. She said she was 15 years old when this started.
Then over a period of two or three years, while she was still underage, Peters claims Herzog had sex with her on several occasions at his home and in a room at his office. Peters said she never told anyone at the time and it was years before she could grapple with the emotional pain of what she says Herzog did.
Now, Peters has filed a Child Victims Act lawsuit against Herzog. She agreed to an interview and to let The Buffalo News identify her.
“When you’re abused you carry tons of shame, like it’s your fault. And I don’t have that (anymore). I’m the person I am because of what happened to me, but I’m not ashamed because it wasn’t my fault,” Peters said. “And I want other people out there to realize it’s not their fault.”
Peters said she fears that there may be other victims of Herzog, a longtime soccer coach at Nardin and Mount St. Mary academies whose dental license is still active.
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