Blackhawks settle second lawsuit in Aldrich case

The Chicago Blackhawks person settled a 2nd suit brought by a erstwhile subordinate who claimed they were negligent successful dealing with intersexual battle allegations leveled against then-video manager Brad Aldrich successful 2010.

The ailment was filed successful 2023 successful Cook County (Illinois) Circuit Court. Romanucci & Blandin, the steadfast that the filed lawsuit, identified "John Doe" arsenic a Black Ace -- a imaginable who joins an NHL squad arsenic a reserve subordinate for the postseason -- during Chicago's tally to the 2010 Stanley Cup Final. It listed 15 counts of negligence.

The suit claimed that Doe was targeted by Aldrich, who "used his authorization arsenic a manager to groom, harass, threaten, and battle John Doe for intersexual gratification." Doe's suit accused the Blackhawks of "utter indifference and/or conscious disregard for the information of its employees" successful not taking enactment erstwhile made alert of Aldrich's actions. The suit claimed that Doe suffered injuries and damages, including "great symptom of assemblage and mind."

The 2 sides issued abstracted statements confirming that a woody had been struck with Doe, but presumption of the colony were not disclosed.

Doe was the 2nd erstwhile 2010 Blackhawks subordinate to record a suit against the squad and scope a settlement. Forward Kyle Beach filed a suit claiming helium was sexually assaulted by Aldrich and that the organization's elder enactment enactment disconnected taking immoderate enactment until aft the Stanley Cup was awarded that season. He settled with the squad successful 2021.

The Blackhawks allowed Aldrich to resign successful 2010. In 2013, Aldrich pleaded blameworthy to transgression intersexual behaviour with a 16-year-old precocious schoolhouse hockey subordinate helium coached successful Michigan. He spent clip successful situation and is present listed arsenic a enactment offender.

A proceedings day of Oct. 27 was acceptable for John Doe's suit earlier the settlement.

Beach's ailment inspired an autarkic reappraisal by the instrumentality steadfast Jenner & Block, which Doe participated successful arsenic "Black Ace 1." That probe resulted successful the NHL fining the Blackhawks $2 cardinal for its "inadequate interior procedures and insufficient and untimely response."

Stan Bowman, the Blackhawks' president of hockey operations and wide manager, and Al MacIsaac, elder manager of hockey administration, some stepped down successful October 2021. Joel Quenneville, who coached the 2010 Blackhawks, resigned arsenic caput manager of the Florida Panthers successful October 2021 aft a gathering with NHL commissioner Gary Bettman.

All 3 executives were reinstated by the NHL successful July 2024.

"While it is wide that, astatine the time, their responses were unacceptable, each of these 3 individuals has acknowledged that and utilized his clip distant from the crippled to prosecute successful activities which not lone show sincere remorse for what happened, but besides grounds greater consciousness of the responsibilities that each NHL unit have, peculiarly unit who are successful positions of leadership," the NHL said successful a connection successful July 2024. "Moreover, each has made important strides successful idiosyncratic betterment by participating successful myriad programs, galore of which focused connected the imperative of responding successful effectual and meaningful ways to code alleged acts of abuse."

Bowman was hired by the Edmonton Oilers arsenic wide manager successful July 2024. Quenneville was named caput manager of the Anaheim Ducks successful May 2025.