Minnesota Jury Awards Survivor $12.5 Million in Lawsuit Against Former Skating Coach and Multiple Skating Organizations

A Hennepin County jury awarded $12.5 million to a woman who was sexually abused as a child by her Twin Cities figure skating coach, NBC affiliate News Channel 11, KARE reported Friday.

The verdict included $2.5 million for deliberate disregard for safety, $7.5 million for past mental and emotional harm and $2.5 million for future mental and emotional harm.

The lawsuit was filed in 2023 under the name Jane Doe and detailed allegations against former coach Thomas Incantalupo as well as several Twin Cities skating clubs and the United States Figure Skating Association. Incantalupo was sentenced to 24 years in prison in 2019 after pleading guilty to multiple counts of criminal sexual conduct. He admitted to sexually abusing the girl over a two year period beginning in 2015 when she was 14. Investigators were told the abuse occurred during domestic and international travel for competitions and training.

A plaintiff’s attorney said, “She just couldn’t take it anymore, and somewhere around age 16, had had enough and let it slip out to a friend.” The lawsuit alleged that the Eden Prairie Figure Skating Club, the St. Paul Figure Skating Club, Inc., the Braemar City of Lakes Figure Skating Club and the United States Figure Skating Association should have known about Incantalupo’s grooming behavior and history before employing or certifying him. Jane Doe asserted that the organizations failed to protect her from abuse that took place between August 2015 and December 2017.

During proceedings that concluded on Nov. 6 and 7, the judge dismissed negligence claims against the skating entities, removing them from the case and leaving only Incantalupo facing civil damages. The judge ruled there was no evidence of complaints about Incantalupo before his arrest and that the entities did not have a duty to protect Jane Doe because they were not aware of any misconduct.

A plaintiff’s attorney said, “It is our intention to ask the court of appeals to take a look at this and say whether they think there is a duty here.” During the civil trial, Incantalupo testified that he did not sexually assault Jane Doe and said he pleaded guilty in 2019 to avoid a potential life sentence.

A plaintiff’s attorney said the now 24 year old survivor continues to experience significant challenges, especially in personal relationships, due to the length and nature of the abuse. Despite the trauma, Jane Doe has redirected her life toward helping others. She no longer plans to pursue professional figure skating and instead has become a police officer with the goal of working in sexual crimes investigations to support victims.