A Just Reward!

College Student Who Falsely Accused Football Players Of Rape Heading To Prison

Bridgeport Police Department

ByJAMES BARRETT

June 8, 2018

A female college student who was facing six years in prison after admitting to falsely accusing two football players of raping her has gotten off relatively easy: As the result of a last-minute plea deal, former Sacred Heart University student Nikki Yovino will only spend one year behind bars, if that. Meanwhile, both of the falsely accused men have left the school after saying they were dismissed from the team and had their scholarships revoked, which the school has disputed.

Yovino was facing up to six years in prison after being charged with second-degree falsely reporting an incident and tampering with or fabricating physical evidence. The charges stem from her false claim to police in October 2016 that two student athletes raped her in a bathroom during an off-campus party, a claim she admitted was false three months later after her story fell apart.

The Connecticut Post provides some more details on her false accusation (formatting adjusted):

On Oct. 15, 2016, police were dispatched to St. Vincent’s Medical Center for a sexual assault complaint. Police said Yovino told them she had attended a Sacred Heart football club party the night before at a house at Lakeside Drive in Bridgeport.

Police said the woman claimed the two men pulled her into a bathroom in the basement of the house. "I don't want to be in here, I don't want to do anything. My friends are waiting for me outside, let me go outside," police said Yovino claimed she told the men. They said she continued that they held her down and each took a turn sexually assaulting her.

Both players admitted to having sex with Yovino in the restroom, but they insisted that it was consensual. A witness also testified to hearing Yovino tell them she wanted to have sex with the two athletes. Detectives additionally noted "inconsistencies in [Yovino's] original statement."

Amid mounting evidence that her allegation was false, Yovino admitted to police three months later that she'd lied. Her motivation, as The College Fix points out, was similar to the motives of Jackie Coakley in the infamous University of Virginia "gang rape" story reported by Rolling Stone and ultimately debunked. Yovino told investigators that she lied about the sex being consensual so she wouldn't lose another male friend who was a "potential boyfriend."

"She admitted that she made up the allegation of sexual assault against (the football players) because it was the first thing that came to mind and she didn’t want to lose (another male student) as a friend and potential boyfriend," the arrest warrant affidavit reads. "She stated that she believed when (the other male student) heard the allegation it would make him angry and sympathetic to her."

Under the plea bargain, Yovino will be sentenced to three years that will be suspended after just one year in prison, after which she will serve three years probation. That single year in prison is also likely to be shorter because she is expected to be awarded some time served.

Meanwhile, as The College Fix notes, the two former Sacred Heart student athletes suffered the consequences of her false claim:

Though the administration previously told The College Fix the players were neither expelled nor stripped of their scholarships “because of any allegations,” the Post said a year ago they withdrew after they were “dismissed” from the team and their scholarships “revoked,” on the eve of a disciplinary hearing.

Sacred Heart is also in dispute with the detective who filed the arrest affidavit, who claims one of the two players lost a year of eligibility and his scholarship, and a source who told the Post the other player also lost his scholarship.

Another Teacher Gets Convicted Of Assaulting A Child. What Is Happening With These Teachers?

Kyle Damato-Kushel: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know

Published 12:10 pm EST, December 22, 2015 Updated 4:24 pm EST, December 22, 2015 Comment By Tom Cleary 

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Kyle Damato-Kushel, who worked as a paraprofessional at a Stratford, Connecticut, school, is accused of sexually assaulting a teen she knew since he was in seventh grade, police say. (Stratford Police)

A former aide at a Stratford, Connecticut, school is accused of sexually assaulting a teen she knew since he was in preschool, police say.

Kyle Damato-Kushel, a 45-year-old married mother of three daughters, was arraigned Monday,the Connecticut Post reports.

She was charged with second-degree sexual assault, fourth-degree sexual assault, risk of injury to a child, tampering with a witness and interfering with an officer, according to court records. She was released after posting $50,000 bail.

Here’s what you need to know:

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1. She Allegedly Began the Assault in 2013 in Her Husband’s Man Cave

Kyle Damato-Kushel is accused of sexually assaulting a teen for several years. (Facebook)

The victim told police the first assault occurred in 2013, when he was in the seventh grade. He told police he had sex with Kyle Damato-Kushel in her husband’s “man cave,” and later elsewhere in the house and around Stratford, the Connecticut Post reports.

The boy told detectives they had sex almost nightly at her Stratford home. He said he would enter through an unlocked window and leave at about 4:30 a.m., when her husband would wake up for work, according to WFSB-TV. The couple’s children were also in the home.

During one of those nights, Damato-Kushel’s husband heard sounds and called police, thinking it was a burglary. The boy was found by officers and began talking, telling them “the first time they had sexual contact was in the summer after 7th grade and Kyle performed oral sex on him in her basement,” according to court documents.

She is also accused of assaulting a friend of the 15-year-old victim.

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2. The Victim Told His Therapist He ‘Cheated on His Girlfriend’ With Her Mother

(Facebook)

The teacher was previously investigated by the state Department of Children and Families after the boy told his therapist he had cheated on his girlfriend with her mother, WFSB reports.

According to court documents, there was no evidence found during that investigation. The case was re-opened in October when Damato-Kushel’s husband reported a burglary and the victim was found inside the house.

Both Kushel and the boy denied the allegations during the initial investigation.

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3. Damato-Kushel Is Accused of Trying to Pay the Teen $500 to Stay Silent

(Facebook)

According to court documents, Damato-Kushel sent text messages to the victim offering him $900 if he would stay silent about the sexual assault. She told the victim to open an online bank account so that she could put money it it, according to court documents.

She was charged with tampering with a witness as a result, police said.

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4. Police Say They Had Unprotected Sex & She Had a Miscarriage After Becoming Pregnant

(Facebook)

Damato-Kushel and the boy “always had unprotected sex and the victim said Kyle was pregnant by him once,” according to court documents. She had a miscarriage, the boy said.

Police said in court documents that they found Damato-Kushel’s DNA in the boy’s underwear.

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5. She Was Fired From Her Job as a Paraprofessional at a Stratford Middle School

(Facebook)

Damato-Kushel was fired from her position as a paraprofessional at Wooster Middle School in November as a result of the police investigation, the school district said.

She was not the boy’s teacher. She began working in the school district in 2006.

“The moment that it was brought to our attention that Damato-Kushel was being investigated for inappropriate behavior with a student, (even though the events took place off of school grounds), she was immediately placed on administrative leave,” Stratford Superintendent of Schools Janet Robinson said in a statement. “Once we received the DCF report on November 9th, 2015 that substantiated the allegations, she was terminated.We will not tolerate this type of behavior, regardless of where it happens. Our responsibility is to protect and educate our students. I am thankful to the Stratford Police Department for bringing this disturbing case to a swift resolution.”