SUSAN MCCULLOUGH, ETC., ET AL., APPELLANTS,
v.
CENTRAL FLORIDA YMCA, ETC., APPELLEE
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An intentional act of child molestation of a criminal character is not an 'accident' under an insurance policy, regardless of the molester's subjective intent regarding bodily injury.
Children sued a YMCA employee and the YMCA for alleged molestation. The YMCA's insurance policy covered 'occurrences,' defined as accidents neither ex…
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COWART, Judge.
An action was brought on behalf of children allegedly molested by an employee of a YMCA1 which was insured under a policy covering an “occurrence,” defined in part as an accident ... which results in bodily injury ... neither expected nor intended from the standpoint of the insured.
From a summary judgment finding no coverage, this appeal results.
We affirm based on Landis v. Allstate Insurance Co., 516 So. 2d 805 (Fla. 3d DCA 1987), which follows Judge Frank’s dissent in Zordan v. Page, 500 So. 2d 608 (Fla. 2d DCA 1986), rev. denied sub nom., South Carolina Insurance v. Zordan, 508 So. 2d 15 (Fla.1987), and express direct conflict with the majority opinion in Zordan.
It is now well understood that the specific intent of the classic child molester is to do an act to gratify his own warped sexual desires. If, before his act, the molester thinks at all about the possible effect his act has on the child, he normally rationalizes that his act will not cause bodily injury or other harm to the child. In any event, insurance coverage does not depend on the child molester’s “specific intent” to do or not to do bodily injury to the child. Regardless of the molester’s subjective speculation, expectation, or intent to cause or not to cause bodily injury to a molested child, an intentional act of child molestation of a criminal character is not an accident.3
AFFIRMED.
ORFINGER and DANIEL, JJ., concur. . The complaint alleges the YMCA employee "did act in a willful, wanton and reckless manner by sexually molesting" three young boys by fondling their genitals.
. See generally Annot., Construction and Application of Liability Insurance Policy Expressly Excluding Injuries Intended or Expected by Insured, 31 A.L.R. 4th 957 (1984).
. See, e.g., Clemmons v. American States Insurance Co., 412 So. 2d 906 (Fla. 5th DCA), 34 A.L.R. 4th 755, rev. denied, 419 So. 2d 1196 (Fla.1982).
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
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Prudential Prop. & Cas. Ins. Co. v. Swindal, 622 So. 2d 467 (Fla. 1993)…), review denied, 508 So. 2d 15 (Fla.1987), in which he said “[i]t defies human response and sensi [*472] tivity to conclude that the inevitable product of the sexual molestation of a child is not intended.” See also McCullough v. Central Fla. YMCA, 523 So. 2d 1208 (Fla. 5th DCA 1988) (“an intentional act of child molestation of a criminal character is not an accident”), approved sub nom. Shearer v. Central Fla. YMCA, 546 So. 2d 1050 (Fla.1989). Our decision in Landis did not suggest that courts apply tort law…
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State Farm Fire & Cas. Co. v. Tippett, 864 So. 2d 31 (Fla. 4th DCA 2003)…act” under the intentional act exclusion in the policy); Insurance Co. of N. Am. v. Querns, 562 So. 2d 365 (Fla. 2d DCA 1990) (finding a teacher’s molestation of a school girl an intentional act excluded from coverage); McCullough v. Cent. Fla. YMCA 523 So. 2d 1208 (Fla. 5th DCA 1988) (finding molestation of children by an employee of the YMCA an intentional act and excluded from coverage). Similarly, in Lindheimer v. St. Paul Fire & Marine Insurance Co., 643 So. 2d 636 (Fla. 3d DCA 1994), the Third District…
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Hamman v. Worling, 525 So. 2d 933 (Fla. 5th DCA 1988)…PER CURIAM. Affirmed on the authority of McCullough v. Central Florida YMCA, 523 So. 2d 1208 (Fla. 5th DCA 1988).. COBB, COWART and DANIEL, JJ., concur.…
Previewing 3 of 9 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Zordan v. Gerald "Bud" Page, 500 So. 2d 608 (Fla. 2d DCA 1986)
- Clemmons v. Am. States Ins. Co., 412 So. 2d 906 (Fla. 5th DCA 1982)
- Landis v. Allstate Ins. Co., 516 So. 2d 305 (Fla. 3d DCA 1987)