NASHUA – Former Bishop Guertin High School student William Liakas of Belmont has filed a lawsuit against the school and the Brothers of the Sacred Heart for negligence stemming from acts of sexual abuse committed by former teacher Brother Guy Beaulieu.

According to Attorney Roderick MacLeish, counsel for Liakas, the incidents occurred during the 1988-1989 school year when Liakas was a 15-year-old freshman. Although nearly 36 years have passed, MacLeish maintained that the case should still be heard.

“This action is timely because the Plaintiff could not reasonably discover the connection between the wrongful acts and his injuries except within the past three years,” MacLeish said in his Jan. 16 Complaint. “The Plaintiff did not make the causal connection between his sexual abuse by Beaulieu and his psychological and emotional injuries until March 2023.

In August 2023, the state Supreme Court reversed a Superior Court ruling and allowed a similar Bishop Guertin case to proceed. In that case, two sexual assaults occurred in 1995 involving Larissa Troy, a senior at the time, and Brother Shawn McEnany who passed away in 2017.

At the time of the assaults in the Liakas case, Beaulieu had been tutoring Liakas in math. However, rather than remaining at school, Beaulieu would take Liakas to his residence for “special attention.”

“The Plaintiff’s tutoring sessions took place in Beaulieu’s bedroom, at his desk and on his bed,” said MacLeish. “The Plaintiff was uncomfortable but had been told to respect and obey teachers and God. Being behind closed doors in a teacher’s bedroom had been normalized.”

He said Liakas was unaware that Beaulieu was sexually abusing other students at the same time.

In the months that followed, MacLeish said Beaulieu began touching Liakas on the thigh and raped him on two occasions.

At that point, Liakas refused to return to Bishop Guertin, going so far as to burn his Bible and textbooks. The following year, he transferred to Alvirne High School in Hudson.

After 19 years at Bishop Guertin, Beaulieu was terminated in 1989 and has since passed away.

“Under sworn testimony, Beaulieu admitted to sexually molesting as many as 20 Bishop Guertin students during his tenure,” said MacLeish. “Beaulieu admitted that in or about 1970 he informed Brother Leo Labbe, then the assistant principal assistant principal at Bishop Guertin, that he molested a 15-year-old student while teaching at Sacred Heart Prep School in Pascoag, R.I.”

MacLeish said Labbe was also at fault as Beaulieu should have been reported to the state Division for Children, Youth and Families.

“Brother Labbe also failed to take any employment-related disciplinary action, or other disciplinary action, against Beaulieu to protect students at Bishop Guertin from Beaulieu,” said MacLeish. “The danger posed by Beaulieu was also known by other persons employed by the Defendants and they failed to take action to protect students. Beaulieu’s sexually abusive behavior with students was well known within the Bishop Guertin community but nothing was done to stop him. Bishop Guertin’s conduct was wanton, reckless and oppressive.”

MacLeish said Liakas has since struggled with “shame and embarrassment” and has even blamed himself for what happened during his freshman year of high school.

“He never received any communication from Bishop Guertin to the effect that there were multiple other students who had been sexually abused as children,” said MacLeish. “Bishop Guertin never sent such communication to the Plaintiff or any alumnus for fear that it would damage the school’s reputation, despite that the fact that Bishop Guertin settled multiple cases involving sexual abuse by Beaulieu and numerous other Brothers and Bishop Guertin faculty.”

Therefore, MacLeish is requesting a jury trial and that his client be compensated for the psychological and emotional trauma that prevent Liakas from having an enjoyable life.

Bishop Guertin and the Brothers of the Sacred Heart issued the following statement in response to the allegations:

“Bishop Guertin High School and the Brothers of the Sacred Heart recently learned that a lawsuit was filed alleging a former student of Bishop Guertin was abused over 25 years ago during the 1988-1989 academic year by a former teacher and member of the Brothers of the Sacred Heart who is now deceased.

“Given our respect for the privacy of the individual who has brought this lawsuit, we will not discuss the allegations. However, we wish to assure all in the community that the safety and security of our students is a top priority.

“As Bishop Guertin enters this new semester in this new year, each of us recommits ourselves to safeguarding the students who are entrusted to our care. Every Brother of the Sacred Heart, teacher and staff member at Bishop Guertin completes a thorough state background check. We do not hire individuals with any history of offenses that place students at risk.

“All Brothers, faculty and staff members complete annual training on student safety, abuse prevention, reporting requirements and proper response to any report of abuse. All allegations of inappropriate behavior within our school community are investigated and reported to the appropriate authorities.

“The school’s response to each situation involving student safety is also reviewed by an independent board of law enforcement, counseling and legal professionals to ensure that we are responding to each situation appropriately and that we remain accountable to the families we serve Our prayers go out to all involved in this matter.”