Key prosecution witness takes stand in Thomas Bernagozzi trial
A man who says former Bay Shore teacher Thomas Bernagozzi sexually abused him when he was a boy took the stand for the second day.
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A man who said former Bay Shore teacher Thomas Bernagozzi abused him as a boy took the stand for the second day in a row in a Riverhead courtroom Thursday.
The alleged victim said that Bernagozzi "enmeshed" himself in his family and described the defendant's alleged acts as "absolutely inappropriate" and "horrific."
The man, who was a Bay Shore student but didn't have Bernagozzi as a teacher, testified that most of the abuse took place at Jones Beach and at the Armitraj, which was a health club in Bay Shore.
He said that as an 8-year-old, he did not conceptualize sexual activities at all, but says now as an adult, it's "clear" Bernagozzi was getting sexual satisfaction from what he was doing.
Bernagozzi's attorney Steven Politi repeatedly questioned the alleged victim about whom he'd told about the alleged abuse.
Each time he named someone, Politi asked the alleged victim if he'd then told the police or his parents.
He repeatedly testified that he had not.
Politi told News 12 that the police were not contacted until after a civil lawsuit was filed. Politi said this case boils down to money.
