Coughlin's Former Pairs Partner Alleges He Abused Her

[Colonel Green]

The anonymity of Coughlin’s accuser(s) allowed a lot of people in the skating community to mount hypothetical or aspersion-based defences of him for a good while (and for his family to spin it in the media as consensual relationships, etc.). We’ll see if this has anybody reconsidering, now that one of his partners has gone public.

 

[Frau Muller]

Good for you, Bridget Namiotka!

USFS phony p.r. machine can’t silence this.

 

[once_upon]

"Grooming happens" that statement speaks volumes.

 

[Prancer]

USFS phony p.r. machine can’t silence this.

Because until now, the USFS has managed to keep a lid on this story?

 

[okokok777]

I really hope that certain members of the skating community come forward and publicly apologize for their social media posts and their Nationals tribute. I understand that they were grieving, but they need to take accountability for their contribution to silencing survivors of sexual abuse.

These girls know these people. They have competed against and trained alongside them. They have been coached by them. They look up to them. They are friends with them. Reading dozens upon dozens of those tribute posts and seeing that sea of red hats at Nationals sent a clear message: "We are not on your side. We don't believe you."

Several of the survivors have been violently re-traumatized in the aftermath of JC's death. They have been called liars, slut-shamed and accused of "murdering an innocent man". The abuse did not happen in a vacuum. People who were responsible for protecting these young athletes knew EXACTLY what was going on and, at best, did nothing. The system failed them.

Things need to change.

 

[coppertop1]

I really hope that certain members of the skating community come forward and publicly apologize for their social media posts and their Nationals tribute. I understand that they were grieving, but they need to take accountability for their contribution to silencing survivors of sexual abuse.

These girls know these people. They have competed against and trained alongside them. They have been coached by them. They look up to them. They are friends with them. Reading dozens upon dozens of those tribute posts and seeing that sea of red hats at Nationals sent a clear message: "We are not on your side. We don't believe you."

Several of the survivors have been violently re-traumatized in the aftermath of JC's death. They have been called liars, slut-shamed and accused of "murdering an innocent man". The abuse did not happen in a vacuum. People who were responsible for protecting these young athletes knew EXACTLY what was going on and, at best, did nothing. The system failed them.

Things need to change.

Excellent post. I just went on FB and the amount of comments blaming the victims are disturbing or people saying they should just let it go now that he's dead. Really? So, the victims' feeling count for nothing?

SafeSport is here for a reason and they should not be blamed for Coughlin's death. Do we want to protect minors or not? If so, it's time to take the blinders off.

 

[once_upon]

When many defend the "nice guy", the victims do the "why me, what did I do to make the perp pick me?"

It's time to believe the victims, in fact it's way past time. I believe the victims.

 

[VGThuy]

I recently had a conversation with some colleagues of mine about what "believe survivors" means for us in the legal profession, especially those of us who are dedicated in the work of minimizing wrongful convictions and upholding our concept of due process since "due process" is often thrown around by those who I suspect do not care about due process in general and only care about women accusing men of wrongdoing. I think we all said when we promote "believe survivors", we're not saying there's a presumption of guilt. But rather, take what the survivors say seriously and don't automatically assume they're lying or not telling the truth before there has been a chance that a full investigation has occurred and "if" there's a trial and evidence is presented and both parties can have their chance to testify.

We don't automatically disbelieve or become skeptical of most crimes when victims come forward, but when it comes to sexual assault it seems people put much more onus on survivors to prove what they said happened actually did. I think we need to stop being skeptical about this and allow investigations and the legal process to do its thing. If some people don't want to trust in the legal process, then they better be willing to upend it or change it for ALL defendants of different sorts of crimes. If it's good enough for the accused in other violent crimes to go through then it's good enough for those accused of sexual assaults to go through.

Plus, if we learned anything, it's this legal process and law enforcement process that has historically made survivors too afraid to come forward thus resulting in great underreporting. "Believe Survivors" is a response to make the process much more welcoming to survivors to report the crimes.

Before someone responds to this saying that often times crimes of sexual assault only rely on "he said/she said" and thus it puts the accused at a disadvantage, then all I have to say is that MANY criminal defendants get indicted only on the basis of witness testimony with no physical evidence. Some even get convicted.

 

[tony]

im endlessly fascinated that Tara is married to Craig Maurizzi yet doesnt believe anyone else's story

100% this.

 

[MsZem]

I recently had a conversation with some colleagues of mine about what "believe survivors" means for us in the legal profession, especially those of us who are dedicated in the work of minimizing wrongful convictions and upholding our concept of due process since "due process" is often thrown around by those who I suspect do not care about due process in general and only care about women accusing men of wrongdoing. I think we all said when we promote "believe survivors", we're not saying there's a presumption of guilt. But rather, take what the survivors say seriously and don't automatically assume they're lying or not telling the truth before there has been a chance that a full investigation has occurred and "if" there's a trial and evidence is presented and both parties can have their chance to testify.

Plus, if we learned anything, it's this legal process and law enforcement process that has historically made survivors too afraid to come forward thus resulting in great underreporting. "Believe Survivors" is a response to make the process much more welcoming to survivors to report the crimes.

I think this came up in a previous thread - maybe a better framing would be to listen to survivors and take them seriously. Which also means conducting a thorough investigation that ensures their voice is respected and heard.

It's not easy to come forward in a case like this one. It's even harder to be the first one to speak out. Bridget is brave to do so, and I hope it's healing for her despite the difficulty.

 

[tony]

I'm literally still furious with what Modlin said, and I'm going to say a bit more regarding why this is the biggest piece of the puzzle for me.

We all know she is married to Craig Maurizi. The same man who has, for the last 20 years, been accusing his former coach of equally awful things. It was a big story following the 1999 Worlds and resurfaced in a big way just prior to the Pyeongchang Games IIRC. Maurizi wants every last person to know his story, and I can understand wanting some kind of justice and closure for how his life has been allegedly affected. We can all (well, most of us..) agree on that.

However, I have a huge problem and I hope that this quote really blows up in Modlin and Maurizi's faces. I've been holding back on whether to share any information that I've been privy to, but since this is the route Modlin is taking, here goes:

I am 100% certain, with the receipts as they say, that these two were trying to contact the accusers right after Coughlin's suicide. Now, at that point, as far as I know the only thing that was public information was that there were at least three (or four) accusers in the SafeSport database, but no names were accessible regardless of who they 'knew'. As of today, it's still at that point. If Maurizi and Modlin are now, as a married couple and as the agent and agent's husband of Coughlin, saying that one accuser is 'an unstable person', WHY did they attempt to talk to anyone? And why is she now giving no comment when they attempted to have plenty to say behind the scenes before?

I really hope more people come forward now that one woman has, and I can only hope they even potentially share evidence that Modlin and Maurizi miraculously knew exactly who to go to.

Unstable much? Shame on Craig Maurizi, especially. And shame on Tara Modlin for believing her husband and yet, still having the balls to comment as she did.

 

[Tavi]

I'm literally still furious with what Modlin said, and I'm going to say a bit more regarding why this is the biggest piece of the puzzle for me.

We all know she is married to Craig Maurizi. The same man who has, for the last 20 years, been accusing his former coach of equally awful things. It was a big story following the 1999 Worlds and resurfaced in a big way just prior to the Pyeongchang Games IIRC. Maurizi wants every last person to know his story, and I can understand wanting some kind of justice and closure for how his life has been allegedly affected. We can all (well, most of us..) agree on that.

However, I have a huge problem and I hope that this quote really blows up in Modlin and Maurizi's faces. I've been holding back on whether to share any information that I've been privy to, but since this is the route Modlin is taking, here goes:

I am 100% certain, with the receipts as they say, that these two were trying to contact the accusers right after Coughlin's suicide. Now, at that point, as far as I know the only thing that was public information was that there were at least three (or four) accusers in the SafeSport database, but no names were accessible regardless of who they 'knew'. As of today, it's still at that point. If Maurizi and Modlin are now, as a married couple and as the agent and agent's husband of Coughlin, saying that one accuser is 'an unstable person', WHY did they attempt to talk to anyone? And why is she now giving no comment when they attempted to have plenty to say behind the scenes before?

I really hope more people come forward now that one woman has, and I can only hope they even potentially share evidence that Modlin and Maurizi miraculously knew exactly who to go to.

Unstable much? Shame on Craig Maurizi, especially. And shame on Tara Modlin for believing her husband and yet, still having the balls to comment as she did.

The “unstable” quote is by Tara Modlin and the article doesn’t mention Craig Maurizi at all, yet you’re alleging that he has acted shamefully. Why is that?

 

[Jarrett]

I had no idea who Bridget was but I found this article/press release about John and Bridget's announcing the end of their partnership. https://web.archive.org/web/20110613114720/http://www.usfigureskating.org/event_story.asp?id=39010

 

[tony]

The “unstable” quote is by Tara Modlin and the article doesn’t mention Craig Maurizi at all, yet you’re alleging that he has acted shamefully. Why is that?

Quoting myself:
I am 100% certain, with the receipts as they say, that these two were trying to contact the accusers right after Coughlin's suicide.

 

[UGG]

I hope everyone who paid tribute at Nationals really takes a good look at what message was being sent to the victims. I have no idea why anyone would feel that was a good idea considering the circumstances. I also hope Bridget coming forward puts a stop to all the crazy conspiracy theories people were desperately posting on here as well as blaming Safe Sport and Christine Brennan for his death. If he did not sexually assault anyone, there would be nothing to investigate or report. I really hope the victims can somehow find peace and not feel any guilt. The suicide seems to me like ultimate gaslighting, putting the victims in a situation where they could potentially question if they were right to come forward and if they were somehow responsible for his death. He probably didn’t even feel guilty and had a “look what you made me do” mentality. People like him have no empathy...obviously.

 

[clairecloutier]

If you go to Bridget Namiotka’s Facebook page & read the comments under her posts implicating John ... it’s really horrible. This is why victims don’t come forward. I really hope she is all right & has support.

 

[UGG]

If you go to Bridget Namiotka’s Facebook page & read the comments under her posts implicating John ... it’s really horrible. This is why victims don’t come forward. I really hope she is all right & has support.

Omg I just was coming to post the same. It is the same few people over and over.

 

[MsZem]

If you go to Bridget Namiotka’s Facebook page & read the comments under her posts implicating John ... it’s really horrible. This is why victims don’t come forward. I really hope she is all right & has support.

Rachael Denhollander got a lot of abuse, too, when she first came forward. They're both very brave.

Though this makes it harder for other women to come forward, I hope Bridget won't be the only one. There is strength in numbers, and I know that Larry Nassar's victims found comfort and strength in their sister survivors.

 

[haribobo]

Omg I just was coming to post the same. It is the same few people over and over.

If you can even call them "people"- they are like bots, maybe all one person, without pictures of themselves, and instead notice they all have pictures of Trump on their profiles. Maybe terrorists of some sort.

 

[UGG]

If you can even call them "people"- they are like bots, maybe all one person, without pictures of themselves, and instead notice they all have pictures of Trump on their profiles. Maybe terrorists of some sort.

Yea I did notice they are all trump supporters with like 1 friend.

 

[UGG]

Also not that I’m trying to speak for Bridget but from a victim’s perspective I would read the comment “nobody innocent hangs themselves” as “if he had not sexually assaulted anyone, he wouldn’t have hung himself because there would be no allegations”. Like...if you didn’t do it, no one would be talking about it. I am sure his suicide was very traumatic for her and most likely she has to reassure herself she didn’t do anything wrong, and if that’s what she has to think and say to cope with this, then ok.

 

[judiz]

Notice that the first and biggest defenders of John were his coach
and agent, the two people who earned their living off of him.

 

[rfisher]

Notice that the first and biggest defenders of John were his coach
and agent, the two people who earned their living off of him.

That's also a way of deflecting attention from themselves as they would be the most likely 3rd party who had knowledge. If they did and did not report it, it makes them complicit under the Safe Sport, USFSA, and IOC rules.

 

[PRlady]

Yea I did notice they are all trump supporters with like 1 friend.

It’s possible they’re not skating fans and know nothing about Coughlin. There’s a band of men’s rights activists on social media, big Trumpies and virulently anti-#MeToo, who go after harassment and assault victims ideologically. They’re the lowest of the low.

 

[Perky Shae Lynn]

It takes a lot of courage for someone to speak out, especially knowing that the accused was popular and has committed suicide. I give Bridget a tremendous amount of credit for coming forward.

But she is very wrong about "nobody innocent hangs himself" part. Wrong message to put out.

 

[Lara111]

It takes a lot of courage for someone to speak out, especially knowing that the accused was popular and has committed suicide. I give Bridget a tremendous amount of credit for coming forward.

But she is very wrong about "nobody innocent hangs himself" part. Wrong message to put out.

What is not clear to me is why she waited for so long and why she did not leave the abusive partner. I also did not get what exactly he did to abuse her. From my experience, some girls with the help of their mothers are extremely unreasonable and blame the partner for mere fact he exists.

 

[believed]

What is not clear to me is why she waited for so long and why she did not leave the abusive partner. I also did not get what exactly he did to abuse her. From my experience, some girls with the help of their mothers are extremely unreasonable and blame the partner for mere fact he exists.

Statements is this is why.

 

[attyfan]

It takes a lot of courage for someone to speak out, especially knowing that the accused was popular and has committed suicide. I give Bridget a tremendous amount of credit for coming forward.

But she is very wrong about "nobody innocent hangs himself" part. Wrong message to put out.

ITA. While I am glad more are speaking out, I wish less focus would be placed on John Coughlin and more directed on the systemic issues -- reporting, what things should have been done, etc. After all, John is before a higher judge (IMO), but humans on this earth still can change and improve the system.

 

[JamieElena]

Also not that I’m trying to speak for Bridget but from a victim’s perspective I would read the comment “nobody innocent hangs themselves” as “if he had not sexually assaulted anyone, he wouldn’t have hung himself because there would be no allegations”. Like...if you didn’t do it, no one would be talking about it. I am sure his suicide was very traumatic for her and most likely she has to reassure herself she didn’t do anything wrong, and if that’s what she has to think and say to cope with this, then ok.

That people don't get that she was speaking specifically about John and not their cousin, uncle, son, husband....is indicative of the level of their intelligence and analytical capacities. Sad.

 

[suef]

If you go to Bridget Namiotka’s Facebook page & read the comments under her posts implicating John ... it’s really horrible. This is why victims don’t come forward. I really hope she is all right & has support.

I've reported a bunch of those posts to Facebook. Not sure it will do any good, but they were too disgusting to do nothing about.