What did Eric Uller do? Santa Monica abuse scandal explained in wake of $122.5 million settlement  

On Tuesday, April 25, the Santa Monica Council approved a settlement for $122.5 million dollars after allegations of s*xual abuse against Eric Uller came to light.

According to CBS, Uller is a 50-year-old Systems Analyst who has been accused of molesting several boys since the 1980's. Santa Monica officials reportedly knew about the allegations since the 1980's, but didn't respond. As a result, the city of Santa Monica has been ordered to pay the victims.

Trigger warning: This article concerns abuse, the viewer's discretion is advised

The plaintiffs suing the city were represented by Attorney Brian Claypool, who condemned Santa Monica officials for not acting sooner regarding Eric Uller's crimes.

While Uller was not a police officer, he volunteered with the police activist league and often claimed to be an officer in order to gain the trust of his young victims.

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The allegations against Eric Uller

As per the New York Post, at least 124 victims claimed to have been abused by Eric Uller, though the number could be as high as 200. As a volunteer at the Police Activist League, he allegedly had many friends in the police force who were willing to ignore his crimes.

Brian Claypost said of Eric Uller's actions:

“The fact that this was a nonprofit connected to police makes it even worse. Police are hired to protect and serve, and the fact that they had this guy around children (...) it never should’ve happened. They knew this guy had a propensity for molesting kids but did nothing. They were protecting a dangerous sexual predator.”

Claypost said that most of Eric Uller's victims came from underprivileged backgrounds. In many cases, he would pretend to be a police officer by showing a badge and gun to victims. The majority of his victims were Latinos from the Pico neighborhood.

Several of the victims were the children of undocumented immigrants who could never accuse Uller without the risk of being deported.

Two of the victims were aged 13 and 14 when they were allegedly abused by Uller and said that they were a part of the Police Activities League program when they were victimized.

After he assaulted them, they were kicked out of the program.

Claypool said:

“He took advantage of particularly vulnerable kids and groomed them by giving them food, buying them sneakers. He also controlled all of the data and knew everything that was going on in that department and what they were saying. People were afraid of him.”

Claypool added that city officials should also be prosecuted for neglecting officers. He added that the officials were well aware that Uller had a history of abuse, but still allowed him to continue with the program. It is unconfirmed whether or not the officials will face any charges.