Attorney Denies USA Swimming’s Timeline on Rick Curl

Robert Allard, the attorney for Kelley Currin, is denying recent claims made by USA Swimming about the happenings when she first spoke with their independent investigator.

In a statement released Thursday, USA Swimming recounted that in April, they advised Ms. Currin to speak with an attorney before the independent investigator forwarded on the settlement agreement between herself and Rick Curl from the 80’s, where Curl exchanged $150,000 in exchange for Currin not pressing charges. They then say that Currin’s attorney agreed with that approach, and so the information was never sent to USA Swimming.

Allard says that this is not the case. “He never told them to hold up on the advancement of the claim and that they wanted Curl’s [Olympic Trials] credentials pulled because he had raped a minor repeatedly,” Allard said through spokesperson Ed Vasquez today.

As for the claim by USA Swimming that it took them “months” to find Ms. Currin, Allard disagrees with that timeline as well.

“It took the Washington Post two weeks after 20/20 aired to find Kelley,” Allard said. Perhaps they need to hire Amy Shipley as their investigator. The fact is that Kelley has lived in the Dallas area since her days as a Longhorn swimmer. For 20 years she has been Kelley Davies Currin. She swam for coach Mark Schubert at the University of Texas. Schubert was hired by Chuck Wielgus as National Team Head Coach. He could not ask Mark for Kelley’s whereabouts? Kelley’s husband swam for Eddie Reese. Call Eddie. He knew her whereabouts. Kelley’s teammates? They knew.”

Allard continued, “the investigator interviewed Kelley at length. So was that interview not shared with USA Swimming as well? So why did they give Curl a coaching credential to the Trials?”

USA Swimming has requested that Allard and Currin be represented at a national-level hearing, but Allard is refusing to participate in what he calls a “sham,” saying that his attendance would give the proceedings.”

In a deposition filed in a US District Court on May 12th, 2010, USA Swimming Executive Director said that he was aware of “rumors” of this settlement, but not hard evidence. The following excerpt is from the deposition, supplied by Currin’s attorneys. In it, Wielgus acknowledges that he had heard Curl’s name for something, but can’t quite pin down what he heard or from whom he heard it. (Q is the question asked, and A is Wielgus’ responses):

14    Q   Did you ever get any information about him having an

15        inappropriate sexual contact with one of his

16        swimmers?

17    A   I have never received any information about that.

20 Q Are you aware of any settlement that Rick Curl made

21 with his alleged victim?

22 A I have — I have heard, just within the past three to

23 four weeks, that there was some sort of a settlement

24 between Rick Curl and a victim or a victim’s family.

25 And that’s the first I heard of that.

7    Q   Okay.  And you said you learned in the last three to

8        four weeks about some kind of settlement?

9    A   I shouldn’t say I learned.  I heard a rumor.  I — I

10        would equate learning as knowing for sure, as opposed

11        to —

12    Q   Heard a rumor?

13    A   — hearing something.  Right, heard a rumor.

14    Q   Who did you hear the rumor from?

15    A   That’s a good question.  I don’t recall who I heard

16        the rumor from, but it — I don’t recall who I heard

17        the rumor from.  I can’t say.

18    Q   But the rumor was just to the extent that he paid —

19        he paid a settlement himself, personally?  Is that

20        what the rumor was?

21    A   No, no.  I just — I — I think I heard it in the

22        context of somebody saying that they had seen his

23        name on a blog or something to that effect.

12
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J Graham
11 years ago

This is all just the tip of the proverbial iceberg. In the 80’s, it was more the norm for male coaches to be having intimate relationships with their under age swimmers. (one former coach of Florida most notoriously). It was known and it was ignored/tolerated. USA Swimming has a lot to answer for and will be haunted by this feigned ignorance for years.

Ken
Reply to  J Graham
11 years ago

What rock did you live under in the 80’s. 15 still got you 20. That right we’re talking 13 so it’s a little confusing.

Shirley
11 years ago

Unfortunately Allard only has his own interest in mind. If he really wanted to help USAS get rid of pedophile coaches he would encourage Davies to testify against Curl. Under federal law the only way USAS can ban Curl is through a Board of Review hearing. Allard calls this process a “kangaroo court” yet it’s federal law. That shows that his true objective is to embarrass USAS on the eve of the Olympics. Perhaps Allard has Phelps envy or is jealous of Lochte being on the cover of Time. In all seriousness Davies SHOULD testify and help remove Curl.

11 years ago

FYI…
Your membership dollars at work – The USA Swimming Lying Continues!
—————————————-
Did USA Swimming Lie to Washington Post and the World About When They Learned of Sex Abuse Allegations Against Coach Rick Curl?

Published July 26th, 2012, Uncategorized

Bob Allard, the San Jose attorney who represents Kelly Currin (née Davies), is hopping mad over something a USA Swimming spokesperson, Jamie Fabos Olsen, told The Washington Post for its report on the “emergency hearing” for Rick Curl, Currin’s old coach.

Curl carried on a sexual relationship 30 years ago with Currin, who was one of his swimmers and was 13 years old at the time. Curl later paid the young woman’s family $150,000, in a shaky… Read more »

11 years ago

Like I said in an earlier post, I’ve never met Allard personally and do not believe that he is involved in the sport. As a person that loves the sport of swimming, I don’t like that this stuff is coming out on the eve of the Olympics. However, I’ve seen both sides of this nasty conflict and the USA Swimming leadership and legal counsel has been nothing short of manipulative and very deceitful. They have hidden, shredded and redacted documents, they have aggressively attacked the actual sexual molestation victims and critics of their policies, they have racked up 10s of thousands of dollars for fines because of attorney misconduct and have lied and manipulated the media covering these stories. If… Read more »

don
11 years ago

The best defense is a good offense.

Your attacks and attempts to discredit Allard are just attempts to cloud and confuse the issue.Make the water murky so you can’t see what is really there.
Attacks on the parents that took money are irrelevant.
What or how you feel about him is irrelevant.
The timing is irrelevant.

The ONLY think that is relevant is a 13 year old girl was sexually abused by a 35 year old coach and he paid 150K to her family to keep their mouths shut.
All that matters is the victim and that her abuser is brought to justice.

Brian
11 years ago

Allard just wants notoriety. He hasn’t had any attention since his last case involving USA Swimming which he claims “netted him California Lawyer of the Year in 2011”.

Someone who needs to brag about that on their company bio, I find hard to trust as an attorney. I would see it as a counsel who wants to try and get their name as “California Lawyer of the Year 2012”.

What, Kelly’s husband never brought it up to anyone he swam for?

Allard wants things done on his terms, his way or the highway. Which is why he won’t attend the USAS hearing, because it will make it look like he’s caving (in his mind). USA Swimming should… Read more »

Brian
Reply to  Brian
11 years ago

That being said, only one version of events is right…it will be interesting to see that, as falsifying his own version of events would mean we’d be seeing his name in the Caifornia Lawyers journal under the “Disbarred/Suspended” section.

sue
Reply to  Brian
11 years ago

What? Brian, the ‘bragging’ on his website is typical and standard practice in most law firms.

Geragos is a criminal defense attorney, not a civil attorney. He would never represent USA swimming. The law is like medicine, brain surgeons don’t do heart transplants etc..

USA swimming will likely offer a settlement.

The decision to make this public post Penn State was strategic.

Starting to get he picture?

Brian
Reply to  sue
11 years ago

That firm covers civil litigation as well…do your research.

Ken
Reply to  Brian
11 years ago

I swam for Rick Curl when he was 23. He’s lucky to still be in one piece at 61. Use to be 15 got you you 20. Rick, it is time for time.

About Braden Keith

Braden Keith

Braden Keith is the Editor-in-Chief and a co-founder/co-owner of SwimSwam.com. He first got his feet wet by building The Swimmers' Circle beginning in January 2010, and now comes to SwimSwam to use that experience and help build a new leader in the sport of swimming. Aside from his life on the InterWet, …

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