Green Valley Sch., Inc. v. Cowles Fla. Broad., Inc.

327 So. 2d 810
CourtDistrict Court of Appeal of Florida
DecidedFebruary 18, 1976
DocketX-24
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 327 So. 2d 810 (Green Valley Sch., Inc. v. Cowles Fla. Broad., Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court of Appeal of Florida primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Green Valley Sch., Inc. v. Cowles Fla. Broad., Inc., 327 So. 2d 810 (Fla. Ct. App. 1976).

Opinion

327 So.2d 810 (1976)

GREEN VALLEY SCHOOL, INC., a Florida Corporation, Not for Profit, Appellant,
v.
COWLES FLORIDA BROADCASTING, INC., a Florida Corporation, Owner and Operator of Wesh-Tv-Channel Two, et al., Appellees.

No. X-24.

District Court of Appeal of Florida, First District.

February 18, 1976.
Rehearing Denied March 26, 1976.

Craig T. James of Clayton & James, Deland, for appellant.

P.S. Paul and Sanford L. Bohrer of Paul & Thompson, Miami, for appellees.

RAWLS, Acting Chief Judge.

On February 10, 1973, at 6:00 p.m.,[1] appellees Todd and Rozier, employees of appellee Cowles Florida Broadcasting, Inc., published the following narration on *811 WESH-TV, Channel 2 (television station owned by appellee Cowles):

"FRED BREWSTER [newscaster]: The President of a controversial private school in West Volusia County was arrested last night along with three staff members as a platoon of law enforcement officers raided the facility. The President was charged with `False Imprisonment' and the staffers held on narcotics charges. Channel 2's Dean Todd was there and files this report:
"DEAN TODD: No less than 50 law enforcement officers from all departments in Volusia County except DeLand and the Sheriff's Office gathered last night in DeLand under the leadership of Chief Investigator Jack Lynady of the State Attorney's Office. They were about to swoop down on the controversial Green Valley School in Orange City after over two years of investigation they planned to arrest Ronald Nowicki, Headmaster and President. Charge: `False Imprisonment'
"The Law Department sprang after a Phys. Ed. Instructor, identified only as a Mr. Kelley, told police it was common practice to lock up the students for days, even weeks at a time. But there was even more. There were allegations of rampant sexual conduct between students themselves and between staff members and female students.
"Nowicki was rousted out of his bed at his small, untidy apartment in a building known as the Monastery. With him was a young, female staff member — he told investigators they were on night duty together.
"About 65 students live on the campus and while Nowicki was being advised of his rights the other officers began securing the other buildings in military fashion. According to officers, some of the male and female students were living in the same dormitories. Most of the rooms were in apparently permanent shambles. The rooms were filthy, even those of most of the staff members were in complete disarray.
"It wasn't long before officers began turning up drugs by the armload. Many were vitamins, many were prescription drugs which have not been identified by the searchers.
"Something else was turned up during the searches: These are electric shock collars. They are made for dog training, but here, according to some of the students, they are used on them, occasionally. Also turned up were a set of shackles and handcuffs used to bind the children. Apparently such implements were expected to be found by the raiders.
"This is 15 year old Mitchell Spalding of San Diego, California, on the right; 14 year old Marc Corren of Miami Beach. The State of California pays $16,000.00 a year for Spalding to stay here. The filth is astounding. Spalding and Corren both told Channel 2 News they had electric cattle prods used on them by staff members and that it was common.
"DEAN TODD: Did they use a cattle prod on you?
"MITCHELL SPALDING: Um, yea, they used it once on me.
"DEAN TODD: For what?
"MITCHELL SPALDING: For nothing. I was asleep and they came up drunk and
"DEAN TODD: Who did?
"MARC CORREN: Me.
"MITCHELL SPALDING: Ah ...
"MARC CORREN: Staff, staff members man.
"MITCHELL SPALDING: Ah, it was Mike Hannigan and I, I was asleep at the time and so I don't know who else *812 did it. But they come up with this bull shocker, ya see, ya know, they really bull shocked me but I hadn't done anything.
"MARC CORREN: I mean that is enough to drive a cow sick man, it could even hurt you, you can feel pain for the next four days.
"DEAN TODD: This is the block house, inside it is bare. Students are reportedly locked inside for days. Eighteen year old Sue Borman of Levitt Town, Pennsylvania, told us that she had been locked in there once, for a week.
"Simultaneously, a Marina, owned by the Green Valley School also was raided. Some six of the students were found when law enforcement officers came upon the area West of DeLand, a short distance South of the Hontoon Marina. The main object of the search was an old boat, a World War II mine-sweeper converted into a diving rig called the `FEARLESS' and reportedly housed students in certain detention cells. But the `FEARLESS' apparently has not left its birth [sic] for two years. It has, aboard it, a decompression chamber. It is supposed to be used primarily by divers stuck with the bends or nitrogen narcosis.
"Informed sources told us that students had been locked in here, as punishment. A brig, located in the bow of the ship, was filthy and rat infested, students reportedly were housed in here, human excrement was also found in this area.
"Back at the school, officers continued to find more pills, some in the room of an instructor. A collection of color slides which graphically detailed several nude women was found in the therapy room as well as a host of electric instruments.
"The searches continued until dawn. Investigator, Lynady summed up the arrest that had been made then:
"JACK LYNADY: A man was arrested for `False Imprisonment', another man was arrested for possession of, ah, marijuana, and ah drug paraphernalia, two girls were arrested for ah ...
"DEAN TODD: It may be sometime before the full implications of last nights raid are known.
"The Federal Government reportedly pays the School about $600,000.00 a year, various states and private individuals pay `exorbitant' amounts to house delinquent children and some with medical problems here.
"The apparent owner, George von Hilshmier, was in Canada. He apparently runs one or two other similar schools; one located in New York.
"Accompanying the officers last night were Internal Revenue Agents who confiscated the School's financial records.
"Some of the children reacted to the raid with fear, some with surprise or amusement. They may have a lot to tell later.
"This investigation, which began two years ago, may be just beginning.
"Dean Todd, Channel 2 News, Orange City.
"FRED BREWSTER: State Attorney, Steven Boyles, said the School could be closed as a public nuisance. Boyles told Channel 2 Green Valley is chartered by the Circuit Court under a State Statute on private schools, and that a ruling as to the application of the law as it relates to the Green Valley School might be obtained from the Attorney General.
"Further charges may be filed pending the outcome of the lab tests of the various drugs taken last night."

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Bluebook (online)
327 So. 2d 810, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/green-valley-sch-inc-v-cowles-fla-broad-inc-fladistctapp-1976.