East Orange, New Jersey - Cop & Police Athletic League Coach Edward Giles Accused of Sexually Abusing Multiple Children in League

East Orange Sergeant, Police Athletic League Coach Arrested on Child Sex Abuse Charges

A veteran cop with the East Orange Police Department and Police Athletic League has been arrested for allegedly sexually abusing multiple children he coached through the league. Prosecutors also believe there could be other victims that have not yet come forward.

59-year-old Edward Giles was with the department for 30 years and was the youth football director for the East Orange Police Athletic League. He has been charged with sexually abusing two boys, beginning when they were 11 and 12 years old – but prosecutors believe it’s likely that there are other victims.

Giles has been charged with several crimes, including:

• 2 counts of first-degree aggravated sexual assault of a child,
• 2 counts of first-degree aggravated sexual assault of a child victim over whom the defendant had supervisory or disciplinary power,
• 1 count of first-degree endangering the welfare of a child,
• 5 counts of various second-degree sexual offenses against a child victim,
• 2 counts of second-degree endangering the welfare of a child,
• 2 counts of third-degree sexual offenses against a child victim,
• 2 counts of fourth-degree criminal sexual contact.

Giles was arrested following a seven-month investigation by the Special Victims Unit of the Union County Prosecutor’s Office. According to that investigation, the first victim was a student-athlete for the East Orange Wildcats youth football team and was abused by Giles several times between 1998 and 2000, when he was between 11 and 13 years old. The second victim was also a youth football player and was abused between 2002 and 2003, when he was between 12 and 13 years old.

Prosecutors believe that several incidents of alleged abuse happened at Giles’ home.

Anyone with information regarding this case or who believes they may have been a victim has been asked to call the Union County Prosecutor’s Office sergeant Sofia Santos at 908-577-4256 or Detective Ryan Kirsh at 908-347-1420. A $10,000 reward has been offered for information leading to additional charges in this case.

Legal Recourse For Victims of Sexual Abuse in Youth Sports Leagues

Attorney contributor Brian Kent helps victims of sexual abuse fight for justice in civil lawsuits. Here is Brian with some commentary on the legal options available to survivors of sexual abuse in youth sports leagues:

In youth sports leagues and all other youth organizations, special care must be taken to make sure the children in the program are safe. This includes having protections in place to prevent sexual predators from hurting these children. When a youth sports coach is reported for sexually abusing athletes, it’s important to determine if the league did everything in their power to prevent the abuse.

In some youth sports sex abuse cases, the abuse may have been stopped or prevented if not for negligence by the league. For example, a youth sports league might be considered negligent if there had been previous allegations of sexual misconduct involving the coach which were never reported or investigated.

Survivors of youth sports sex abuse may have grounds for a lawsuit in cases where negligence was involved.

If you or a loved one is a survivor of sexual abuse by a youth sports coach, you can learn more about your legal rights in a free case consultation with one of our experienced sex abuse victims lawyer.

Sources:

https://abc7ny.com/nj-cop-football-coach-accused-of-sexually-assaulting-kids/5623563/

https://www.nj.com/union/2019/10/veteran-nj-cop-charged-with-sexually-assaulting-2-boys-who-played-in-football-program-he-ran.html