ATLANTIC CITY - Following a five day trial in a child sexual abuse case, an Atlantic County civil jury rendered $3 million verdict against a former lifeguard. The verdict is comprised of $1.75 million dollars in compensatory damages and $1.25 million in punitive damages.
During the trial, the victim, Rachel Neufeld-Del Rossi and her attorney presented evidence that she was first groomed and sexually assaulted as a 15-year-old in the summer of 1979 by Steven Allen Chasens, an adult lifeguard in Margate City, and that the abuse continued for four years.
The victim's testimony was supported by letters, cards, photos and plane tickets showing Chasens groomed and abused her in New Jersey and also transported her to travel to various locations, including Florida and the Cayman Islands, where he continued to sexually assault her. While Chasens denied years of abuse, the jury unanimously found him responsible for sexual battery, violations of the New Jersey Human Trafficking Act, and intentionally inflicting harm upon her.
Cherry Hill attorney Jeffrey Fritz of Soloff & Zervanos represented Del Rossi.
"We thank the jury for their service, attentiveness and willingness to condemn the scourge of child sexual abuse. I'm relieved that my client can continue to focus on healing and I remain in awe of her strength and courage,” Fritz said in a statement.
"I feel vindicated,” DelRossi said. “After decades of struggling and having no voice for myself, tonight, for the first time, I can sleep knowing that I was believed. This verdict speaks for all survivors, and I am forever grateful for not only the jury but also the Child Victims Act that gave me the only chance I could to seek accountability.”
Margate’s former liability insurance carrier paid its share of the verdict totaling $485,000 earlier this year.
The lawsuit was pursued under the Child Victims Act, a 2019 law which permits survivors of child sexual abuse to seek justice after years or even decades.
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