Volleyball Coach Rick Butler Facing Class-Action Lawsuit Over Sex Abuse

Renowned volleyball coach Rick Butler has previously faced allegations of sexually abusing his players, but is now a defendant in a class-action lawsuit that seeks to expose the extent of his abuses, dating back as far as 1981, according to the Chicago Sun Times. His wife is also facing allegations of intimidating the victims into silence.

Butler built the Sports Performance Volleyball program and the Great Lakes Center, based out of Aurora, Illinois, and is widely considered one of the most powerful coaches in youth volleyball. His program is considered a feeder to NCAA schools and frequently produces NCAA athletes. He can make or break a career.

Laura Mullen, the mother of two players under Butler, filed the suit, claiming that he “used his position of power to sexually abuse no fewer than six underage teenage girls,” and that his wife Cheryl Butler concealed his abuse by threatening victims. The suit relies extensively on previous disciplinary actions that have never been widely publicized, and document an extensive history of emotional, physical, and sexual abuse of under-age athletes under his care.

The 72-page suit specifically highlights the accounts of six players, Sarah Powers-Barnhard, Beth Rose, Christine Tuzi, and Julie Romias, who previously accused Butler of abuse in the 80s. Details include allegations that Butler inviting one unnamed player over to his apartment so she could shower, and then raping her in the shower. According to Christine Tuzi, Butler impregnated her while she was in college, forced her to get an abortion, and then "demanded that she masturbate him" in the hotel room they stayed in—which he also made her pay half of with her weekly food stipend.

In 1995, Powers-Barnhard, Tuzi, and Romias came forward with their stories, which led to a hearing in front of the Ethics and Eligibility Committee of the United States Volleyball Association. The committee found that Butler had sex with all three while they were both underage, and under his supervision and he was subsequently banned for life from USVA (it was partially lifted in 2000). Simultaneously, the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services also held hearings into Butler's behavior, which found "credible evidence" of abuse.

Butler faced down similar accusations of sexual abuse in 2015, and consequently stepped down from his voluntary administrative role with the Amateur Athletic Union.

In January of this year, Butler's abuses were addressed again by the USA Volleyball Ethics and Eligibility Committee, and Butler's lifetime ban was reinstated. In February, he was officially banned for life from the AAU, and shortly thereafter he was indefinitely suspended by Junior Volleyball Association. Nevertheless, the lawsuit claims, Butler attended tournaments after his indefinite suspension and still runs his own camps and clinics through his Sports Performance Volleyball program and Great Lakes Center.

The suit is filed under several causes of action related to fraud and deceptive business practices. The suit alleges that Butler and his businesses, have misled parents and athletes about the quality of their services, and their claims of providing a safe environment by failing to disclose his abusive past. The suit further alleges that Butler and his company have violated several Illinois state laws designed to ensure athlete safety for the same reason.

Mullen is asking, on behalf of the as-yet determined class, for injunctive relief requiring Butler to truthfully and accurately disclose his abusive track record to current and prospective parents, for monetary damages for anyone who was paid for his services, as well as statutory fines.