Florida Injury Lawyer Blawg
The three-week-long trial in the case of an American orphanage founder accused of sexually abusing multiple boys in Haiti ended Thursday with a guilty verdict.
Michael Geilenfeld, 73, of Colorado, was found guilty on six counts of engaging in illicit sexual contact with minors in a foreign place and one count of traveling from Miami to Haiti for that purpose Thursday in Miami federal court. He faces up to 30 years in prison on each of the charges, according to reporting from the Miami Herald.
Geilenfeld was previously offered a plea deal to shorten his sentence but rejected it.
The abuse took place at the St. Joseph’s Home for Boys in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, between 2005 and 2010 on boys as young as 9 years old. Now, in their 20s, some of these boys bravely took the stand to testify against their abuser.
Geilenfeld started the home for orphaned, impoverished and otherwise vulnerable children in 1985 and sat at its helm for over two decades. When one of the survivors, now an adult, spoke with other children at the home about his disturbing encounter with Geilenfeld, he testified he was stabbed near his collarbone by another boy who was “close to Geilenfeld,” according to reporting from the Miami Herald. At the time of the abuse, he was 12 years old.
The investigation into the sexual abuse allegations was launched by Homeland Security Investigations and the FBI last year followed by Geilenfeld’s arrest in January 2024. Photos and other evidence of the abuse was found in May 2019 when Geilenfeld was traveling through Miami International Airport to the Dominican Republic. Geilenfeld operated another home for boys in the Dominican Republic after attempting to escape sexual abuse allegations in Haiti, where he spent a year in jail on suspicion of charges of indecent assault and criminal conspiracy and still has a pending court case that has yet to be retried.
Allegations that Geilenfeld abused the boys in his care have swirled publicly since at least 2014 after children’s rights advocates campaigned for his arrest.
The 12-person jury deliberated for five hours Thursday before returning their verdict. Geilenfeld is scheduled to be sentenced on May 5 before U.S. District Judge David Leibowitz.
Leesfield & Partners
Sadly, Leesfield & Partners knows that every nine minutes child protective service agents all over the United States substantiate or find evidence for claims of child sexual abuse, according to data from the Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network (RAINN). These numbers are the shocking reality of girls and boys all over the United States who are, more times than not, abused by a person who is given trusted access to that child. Whether it is a teacher, coach, daycare employee or family member, the majority of these individuals know their targets before the abuse takes place. In fact, a staggering 93% of victims and survivors who are under 18 years old know their abusers, according to data from RAINN.
Leesfield & Partners has handled numerous cases of sexual abuse at the hands of individuals entrusted to care for and protect the very children they have exploited. Our attorneys have worked tirelessly to help victims and survivors navigate the judicial system in search of justice and have routinely secured the best possible outcome for injured clients. The firm recognizes the extreme emotional toll that these cases can take on victims and survivors and their families as they reopen old wounds or revisit traumatic events in order to hold perpetrators accountable. With that pain comes incredible responsibility and our attorneys handle each case with the dignity and care that they deserve.
The emotional and traumatic injuries that sexual abuse can leave behind can have long-lasting effects. It is with this knowledge that Leesfield & Partners annually contributes to organizations that provide essential services to help victims and survivors heal and rebuild following abuse. Through The Leesfield Family Foundation, the charitable organization of the firm’s Founder and Managing Partner, Ira Leesfield, the firm is able to support the work of places like Kristi House and Voices for Children America.
Previous Cases
A hotel with a violent history of criminal activity refused the advice of police and a security company, leaving two Leesfield & Partners clients vulnerable to an eventual attack by a crazed assailant. This man was not questioned by hotel staff or security when he entered the property and traveled up the elevator to our clients’ floor where he launched a vicious and brutal attack. Not only did he beat up both husband and wife involved in this case, but he savagely raped and sexually assaulted the wife in multiple areas of the hotel before police arrived. The horrific event was witnessed by both staff and security who did nothing to intervene.
There was a well-documented history of gun violence, assaults, armed robberies and other crimes at this location. Despite this history, hotel officials did not hire armed guards to address the issue, paving the way for the sickening attack.
“This was one of the most horrendous breakdowns in hotel security that we’ve ever seen, from ownership to management, all the way down to the low-level employees on site,” Partner Justin B. Shapiro, the attorney who handled the case, previously told reporters.
That case was settled for $16 million.
The firm recently secured confidential settlements for four individuals who were abused as children by a member of the clergy at their parochial primary and middle schools. As a result of the abuse, these individuals suffered significant trauma that followed them into adulthood, affecting every aspect of their lives.
While Leesfield & Partners recognizes that no monetary amount can erase the damage, having the abuse recognized and having those responsible take accountability can be among one of many steps forward for our clients in the healing process.
A confidential settlement was obtained for a Canadian tourist who was traveling on a cruise ship when she was raped by a crew member. This crew member abused his employee status by using a keycard to access the woman’s room where the abuse took place.
The firm secured an $8.6 million recovery for a camper abused by a counselor at a well-known Florida summer camp. Camp officials failed to recognize the obvious signs of the counselor’s disturbed behavior, allowing this individual continued access to the children in their care.
A prestigious Florida high school was held accountable when they were made to pay several multi-million-dollar reparations thanks to the work of Leesfield & Partners. The perpetrator in that case was a teacher at the school who was a serial sexual abuser and targeted multiple students at the school.
The firm previously secured a confidential settlement for a child who was sexually abused while traveling with an airline. The child was flying as an unaccompanied minor and was meant to be under the watch of flight attendants. During the flight, the child was sexually abused by another passenger.
Leesfield & Partners secured $1.13 million for a store employee who was raped and robbed at a Florida shopping mall.
A woman working as a maid at a Monroe County hotel was raped by a man who was allowed to be on the property despite the fact that he was not a guest. The man was left alone, allowing him to sleep by the pool and use drugs. He was not approached by security or any of the other staff at the hotel and was allowed to roam the property for hours before he entered a room that our client was cleaning and attacked her.
The firm secured a $1 million settlement in that case.
The firm previously recovered $650,000 for a child who was sexually abused at a youth center.
In an ongoing case being handled by Bernardo Pimentel II, a Trial Attorney at the firm, our client suffered trauma and PTSD after a crew member planted hidden cameras in her private cabin. Our client was not the only one whose room had been targeted. Other victims of the crew member’s disturbed behavior included minors and other passengers.
This crew member was sentenced to 30 years in prison for producing child sex abuse material. In this case, much like the tragic case involving the Canadian tourist, the crew member was given unfettered access to passengers’ rooms via his employee status.
If you have been affected by sexual abuse, you are not alone. Help can be found by calling RAINN’s 24-hour Support Line at 1-800-656-4673.
If you or someone you know was sexually abused and is interested in making a claim, help can be found by calling a Leesfield & Partners skilled personal injury attorney. Call 800-836-6400 for a free consultation today.
