William P. Robinson III

William P. Robinson III is a Rhode Island Supreme Court justice.

William Robinson graduated from the University of Louvain, University of Rhode Island, University of Connecticut, and Boston College Law School. He served on the East Greenwich School Committee from 1988 to 1996 and the Board of Governors for Higher Education from 2000 to 2003. Governor Donald Carcieri appointed him to the Supreme Court in 2004.^[1]

While in private practice, Robinson represented the St. George's School in 1989 against allegations of condoning a culture of rape. In the case, Anne Scott described having been serially raped at age 15 by a 67-year-old school trainer, Al Gibbs. While not known publicly at that time, four other students had complained to the school about being raped by that same trainer. The school attacked the allegations, by—for example—insisting that the former student be forced to publicly reveal her identity. Robinson directed this legal defense. As he wrote as part of the 1989 legal case, "Maybe people will come forward and say the plaintiff is a, with all due respect to those in the court, has a tendency to lie, and that would be relevant, also." As part of his defense of the school, Robinson also argued that if the two did have sex, that it was consensual .^[2] While making that case, Robinson was chastised by U.S. Magistrate Jacob Hagopian, who denied the school’s motion to dismiss, saying that the teenager could not consent to such "detestable" acts. "It violates the criminal laws of the United States," he said, "or of any state of this Union, or of any civilized country, where the element of it being volitional or non-volitional, or voluntary or non-voluntary, has anything to do with this type of detestable allegation made by a person who is not of age of consent, can you explain that to me?" When Robinson tried to explain, Hagopian cut him off, stating, "It’s impossible. It violates the criminal laws of the United States." ^[3]

While that 1989 case has long been dropped, an investigation by St. George's own attorneys in 2015 concluded that the allegations of rape were true. Further, a total of at least 26 students were assaulted by at least 6 members of the St. George's faculty and staff^[4][5]

In 2016, in reaction to criticism, Robinson defended himself: "In the 1980s, while engaged in the private practice of law, I represented St. George’s School in certain litigation in the federal court which has recently become the subject of interest in the media. I represented the client as an attorney must, zealously, ethically and to the best of my ability. I do not believe that further comment is necessary or appropriate." ^[6]

References