Former Norwalk High School softball coach Cary Nadel was charged with four counts of fourth-degree sexual assaults and one count of risk of injury to a child in connection with incidents that occurred on school grounds, police said.

NORWALK — The families of three female teenagers are asking a court to award damages for alleged inappropriate touching and sexual assault by a former Norwalk High School softball coach who is already facing criminal charges.

The lawsuit filed July 8 in Stamford/Norwalk Superior Court demands more than $15,000 in damages from Carey Nadel, 70, of Wilton, the Norwalk Board of Education and the City of Norwalk for alleged sexual assault and battery, intentional emotional distress and negligence.

The plaintiffs, identified only as Jane Doe 1, 2 and 3, claim during the 2023-2024 and 2024-25 softball seasons Nadel repeatedly subjected the girls to “unwanted sexual touching of their intimate body parts, inappropriate sexual comments, and other degrading conduct.”

Nadel in May was charged with four counts of fourth-degree sexual assault and risk of injury to a child for incidents that occurred on school grounds and released after posting a $100,000 bond.

The lawsuit, which includes distress allegedly caused to each of the girl’s mothers, notes all three girls “were members of the Norwalk High School softball team and participated in the varsity and/or junior varsity programs.”

A spokesperson for Norwalk Mayor Barbara Smyth did not respond to a request for comment regarding the lawsuit. The city Board of Education previously declined comment on the matter.

Representatives of the Maya Murphy law firm, which is representing Nadel in his criminal case, could not be reached for comment Monday.

In May, police said the investigation determined that the incidents occurred on school grounds.

According to the lawsuit, Nadel “made repeated comments about the Plaintiffs' bodies, including telling players to ‘stop eating and workout’ so their pants would fit and commenting on a player removing layers of clothing by saying ‘wow you're thin now."’

The suit adds Nadel allegedly told players that “back in his day" he could "touch girls' hips without asking for consent and that having to ask for consent now was ‘stupid.”’

Specifically, the lawsuits claims Nadel repeatedly placed his hands on each girl, touching their “lower back, hips, waist, buttocks, thighs, and inner thighs without consent while purportedly ‘coaching.”’

As a result, the girls and their mothers “suffered physical pain and discomfort, severe emotional distress, anxiety, depression, humiliation, embarrassment, loss of self-esteem, and other damages, some of which are permanent in nature.”

The lawsuit alleges that Nadel received a warning following a Brookfield Police Department investigation about touching players' buttocks.

The claim against the BOE and the city follows similar allegations, noting the defendants “failed to adequately investigate or screen Defendant Carey Nadel’s fitness, temperament, or propensity for inappropriate conduct toward female students in hiring.”

The suit further alleges the BOE and city failed to conduct reasonable background checks, hired and/or retained a coach it knew or should have known was unfit to safely interact with minor female athletes and failed to exercise reasonable care in selecting coaches who could be trusted with minor female athletes.

July 21, 2026|Updated July 21, 2026 7:36 a.m.