Miami, Ohio responded “appropriately” to Brad Aldrich’s allegations: report

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An independent investigation commissioned by the University of Miami in Ohio found that school officials appropriately responded to two credible allegations of sexual assault against former Blackhawks video coach Brad Aldrich while he was principal hockey operations in Miami from July to November 2012.

The first alleged sexual assault occurred during the Thanksgiving vacation in 2012 and involved a non-student who had worked at summer hockey camps in Miami as an intern. Less than a week later, after being informed that the university was studying the alleged victims’ report and that it would be suspended as of November 27, Aldrich resigned. The second alleged sexual assault also took place during Aldrich’s stint in Miami, but it was not reported until 2018.

Miami hired Aldrich on the recommendation of Miami hockey coach Enrico Blasi. Blasi cited Aldrich’s work experience and knowledge of ice hockey, video and technology for hiring him. Aldrich arrived in Miami after working at Notre Dame. Blasi was unsure why Aldrich left Notre Dame, but Blasi thought Aldrich might have wanted to return to training as his position at Notre Dame was not directly affiliated with the squad.

The report, by law firm Barnes and Thornburg, also said Aldrich had not provided any references from former employers, including the Blackhawks with his resume when he applied for the job in June 2012. One of the two lawsuits targeting the Blackhawks against Aldrichs. The conduct alleges that the Blackhawks provided positive references to prospective employers for Bradley Aldrich as a hockey coach despite their knowledge of two allegations of sexual assault made against Aldrich by Blackhawks players.

The second lawsuit is brought by a former high school hockey player in Houghton, Mich. Who was sexually assaulted by Aldrich, then a volunteer coach at Houghton, in March 2013. Aldrich was convicted of criminal sexual misconduct involving a minor and was sentenced to nine months in prison.

The report acknowledged that if Miami had been aware of certain information at the time of the allegations, it may have conducted its earlier investigation differently. These examples included the fact that Aldrich had a close relationship with freshmen on hockey teams and had worked hard to cultivate that. Aldrich also allegedly revealed his homosexuality to the group of players and, in the context of what later happened at Houghton, there appeared to be a pattern with him, according to the report.

The report also found that Miami was limited in its ability to inform prospective employers of the allegations against Aldrich, as no criminal complaints had been filed and no national database or system to track the allegations of unsuccessful allegations of Aldrich. sexual misconduct. .

(Photo: Eliot J. Schechter / NHLI via Getty Images)

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