Kendall County Judge Denies Bid to Throw Out Hastert Lawsuit

YORKVILLE, IL — A Kendall County judge has denied former Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert’s bid to have a lawsuit filed against him thrown out.

The lawsuit, filed by a man known only as James Doe and who claims Dennis Hastert sexually abused him, aims to receive the rest of the $3.5 million in hush-money promised to him by Hastert.

According to the Chicago Sun-Times, Hastert’s lawyer, John Ellis, argued that the deal was invalid from the start. But Kendall County Judge Robert Pilmer said in his ruling that the plaintiff had “the necessary elements to allege a claim for contract” and “sufficiently alleged the existence of consideration for a contract to survive a motion to dismiss.”

The lawsuit claims that when Doe was 14, Hastert offered to take him to wrestling camp, even though it was only for high school students.

“Doe agreed to go to the camp with Hastert and other students. While at the camp, (Hastert) violated the special trust (Doe) placed in (Hastert) by sexually molesting and abusing (Doe) in a motel room,” the lawsuit said.

For years after, Doe suffered panic attacks, which led to periods of unemployment, career changes, bouts of depression, hospitalization and long-term psychiatric treatment, according to the lawsuit.

Doe did not initially blame Hastert for these problems until he became aware that Hastert had allegedly abused someone else. Doe then met with Hastert to discuss what he had done, according to the lawsuit.

During their discussions, Hastert acknowledged the pain and suffering he caused Doe, who asked Hastert to compensate him for it. Doe suggested a payment of $3.5 million, to which Hastert agreed.

Both men agreed to keep the agreement confidential and entered into an oral contract where Hastert would pay Doe $3.5 million and Doe would give up any right to sue for personal injuries or seek any public acknowledgement of the misconduct, according to the lawsuit.

From June 2010 to December 2014, Hastert paid Doe $1.7 million of the agreed upon amount. However, once Hastert was investigated over making structured withdrawals to avoid currency reporting, he falsely claimed he was being extorted by a former Yorkville High School student and wrestler who threatened to go public with a false allegation, according to the lawsuit.

In December 2014, Hastert breached the agreement by failing to pay the remaining amount owed, the lawsuit said. Doe claims he has kept up his end of the agreement.

Doe is asking the court to grant judgement in favor of him and to award him $1.8 million plus interest from December 2014 to date of payment and provide any other relief that the court finds to be just and proper, according to the lawsuit.

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