Adams-Cheshire Closing Book on 40-Year-Old Sex Abuse Cases

CHESHIRE, Mass. — School officials have ended an investigation into alleged sexual abuse committed by a former employee in the 1970s.

The Adams-Cheshire Regional School Committee read a prepared statement Monday stating that because no lawsuit has been filed against the district, the district has stopped its investigation.

"To date no suit has been filed against the district," Chairman Paul Butler said. "Since no claim or suit has been filed, the district's investigatory activities ceased and no report was prepared."

The allegations were raised in 2016 when the School Committee received a letter from an attorney representing two men who claimed to have been sexually abused by custodian Clement St. Hilaire in the mid-1970s at then Adams Memorial Middle School.

St. Hilaire was allowed to voluntarily terminate his employment in 1976. The Berkshire Eagle was contacted by one of the men nearly two years ago and last year wrote several articles about the alleged abuse, with at least seven men coming forward to say St. Hilaire had molested them. St. Hilaire, now in his 90s, had acknowledged to the paper he had abused the first two men named.

The statute of limitations for a criminal case was passed years age and expired or close to it for a civil complaint.

Butler noted that the letter also threatened that a lawsuit would be filed unless certain demands were met.

"In response, the district hired an attorney experienced in handling claims of sexual abuse," he said. "The demands were not met, and no suit has been filed by either of the two individuals."

After the initial claim, Butler said fewer than eight individuals contacted the district with similar stories of abuse regarding the former employee, in most cases anonymously. He said only four of those people spoke with district personnel and no legal action has been taken by those individuals either.

Butler closed his statement by saying the district did engage attorney Nancy Frankel Pelletier to provide advice in the event a claim was brought forward but her services were not needed.

"She was not hired nor asked to perform an investigation," he said. 

Friday Afternoon Fire Destroys Cheshire Barn

By Tammy Daniels iBerkshires Staff
04:40PM / Friday, April 03, 2026

 

CHESHIRE, Mass. — A fire on Friday afternoon destroyed a barn at 920 Sand Mill Road.

 

The building is a total loss but firefighters were able to prevent the flames from reaching another nearby barn and the house at Stoney Brook Farm. 

 

Fire Chief Thomas Francesconi said the fire was called in 12:39 p.m. by the homeowners "but it already had a foothold before they noticed it."

 

Responding firefighters found the L-shaped structure fully involved. Adams, Lanesborough, Savoy and Windsor fire companies responded and Williamstown Fire covered the station.

 

The tankers were used to transport water from a nearby brook until a pool could be set up near the scene and water pumped into it. 

 

Northern Berkshire EMS responded and one firefighter was treated at the scene and then taken to Berkshire Medical Center. 

 

Francesconi said there were no other injuries but the owners told him there were 18 chickens in the barn. The structure also had equipment and other materials in it, including a Jeep.