(Update 1/29/2024: Mr. Rusch passed away on January 14, 2024 according to publicly-viewable Wikipedia entry.)
(Update 9/10/2024: The case is ongoing as of September 10, 2024.)
One of the many cases we looked at in my music business course was that of Robert “Bob” Rusch who used to run the labels Cadence Jazz and CIMP, as well as Cadence Magazine (the current incarnation of the magazine is run by someone else). I had been following this story for nearly a decade, now a lawsuit, and received notification today (Aug. 13, 2022) that attorneys were added for the defendants. The case is moving forward in the system.
Bob Rusch is accused of allegedly assaulting students at Brooklyn’s Woodward School in the 60s and the 70s, and the statute of limitations for the alleged crimes had expired. However, in 2020, under New York’s Child Victims Act which opened a look-back period for victims of childhood abuse, the alleged victims were able to bring a new lawsuit.
Many around me had worked with him: musicians recording for his labels, publicists trying to get a review or two in his magazine. My dealings with Mr. Rusch was limited to online interactions during the time I was the director of communications for Tri-Centric Foundation, starting around 2010. Mr. Rusch would often send emails requesting promo copies although we had taken him off our curated press list quite early on and were not sending him any copies.
In 2014, explosive WSJ articles came out:
In several phone interviews with The Wall Street Journal from his home in upstate New York, Mr. Rusch acknowledged that he had sex with multiple young students, while declining to comment on some allegations and denying others. “I accept involvement in some of the things that went on, not all of them, and to that extent I am embarrassed and remorseful and I have been for the better part of 41 years,” said Mr. Rusch, who is now 71 years old. “I carry a lot of guilt.” (Hollander, Sophia. “Years of Abuse at Brooklyn School Alleged”. The Wall Street Journal, June 4, 2014)
What happened afterwards brought up many questions, not just about Mr. Rusch, but also about how we as individuals were supposed to deal with this information. Mr. Rusch had not been convicted of a crime. The alleged crimes were past the statute of limitations. Where does one draw the line? What line? There were musicians around me who stated that Mr. Rusch deserved a “second chance” (“but,” I asked, “if Mr. Rusch hadn’t been convicted, why would he need a second chance?”). That everything was too grey and that it was okay to keep working with him. I know that Mr. Rusch remained on at least one publicist’s promo list even after the articles were published although, by then, Cadence Magazine was technically no longer under Mr. Rusch’s leadership.
What about the works of music on Mr. Rusch’s labels? Articles published in his magazine? Musicians and writers may or may not have known about the allegations but had nothing to do with them. (This leads to a different and likewise nebulous area of “cancelling” works created by many individuals who had nothing to do with the crime or the controversial issue because the prominent representative seen as being responsible for the work – composer, conductor, producer, director, etc. – was convicted or cancelled.)
We wade through a world of grey.
To this day, many academic sexual assault cases are settled out of court, perpetrators are never convicted (or found liable) and the institutions turn a blind eye as the alleged perpetrators move on to other institutions, organizations or freelance jobs. The defendants for Mr. Rusch’s case also include the Woodward School (acquired by Poly Prep in 1995). A question that haunts me: what could the adults have done better?
The music industry, including teaching, is hardly immune to sexual assault and harassment; schools and mentor/mentee relationships can be just one step away from grooming. I also come from another industry which, from my experience, has been just as bad, if not worse: the media. I feel that it is important to speak on these matters and discuss it from many angles. There may never be one right way to avoid or prevent these situations, but we may be better able to help the next generation by studying past and present cases. My hope is that the victims are compensated somehow and find some sort of closure through the process. I want to keep following this case because I care. Many of us have been victims (as so many of my colleague have noted, “Who hasn’t?”). We can continue to raise our voices to make the world a safer place.
(The plaintiffs are represented by top lawyers from a law firm which has been involved in many high profile sexual abuse cases including those of Larry Nassar and Jeffrey Epstein.)
Case active as of 1/13/2024.
Sources:
Hollander, Sophia. (June 4, 2014). “Former Brooklyn Teacher Regrets Losing ‘Ethical Compass'”. The Wall Street Journal. (This article is behind a paywall.)
Hollander, Sophia. ( June 4, 2014). “Years of Abuse at Brooklyn School Alleged”. The Wall Street Journal. (This article is behind a paywall.)
Hollander, Sophia. (June 5, 2014). “Women Accusing Former Brooklyn Teacher of Abuse Announce Press Conference“. The Wall Street Journal. (This article is behind a paywall.)
Statement by attorney Gloria Allred. (June 5, 2014). Gloriaallred.com.
Victim’s Impact Statements. (June 5, 2014). Gloriaallred.com.
Cline, Rachel. (June 30, 2019). “The Darkroom”. Mr. Beller’s Neighborhood.
DeGregory, Pricilla. (July 30, 2020). “Three women accuse ex-private school teacher of sexual abuse: suit”. The New York Post.
Info on NYS Child Victims Act.