Dozens of children were abused over 20 years by owner of SC cheerleading gym, law firm says

The Strom Law Firm announced it will file a lawsuit Monday against a Greenville cheerleading gym and its owner who killed himself last week.

Bakari Sellers said Monday the firm is representing multiple people, including one whose case dates back 20 years. They allege they were sexually abused by Scott Foster and the abuse was overlooked by others at Rockstar Cheer and Varsity Sports .

Sellers also cited the U.S. All Star Federation as culpable.

“They stood by” and let children be harmed, he said.

“We’re going against the entire system,” he said.

Foster shot himself in the head Aug. 22 as he sat in his vehicle at Paris Mountain State Park in Greenville County.

Meanwhile, Peter McGrath, a Mount Pleasant lawyer, said he is investigating wrongdoing by Foster and the cheerleading business and intends to file a lawsuit as well. He said among the allegations is supplying alcohol to minors.

McGrath sued Rockstar alleging negligence when a 12-year-old girl suffered a brain injury in 2017 while training. He said he reached a settlement with the company in January. The terms are confidential, he said.

Foster, 49, opened Rockstar Cheer in 2007. His biography on the gym website says he is a native of Kentucky and played track, tennis, soccer, football, baseball and basketball. He attended the University of Louisville, where he joined the cheer squad and majored in criminal justice with hopes of being an FBI agent.

Instead, he became a cheer coach.

“I knew I could excel as an FBI agent; but I wanted a career doing something I would love each and every day,” he says on the website.

Sellers said he believes there are “dozens and dozens” of boys and girls who have been abused.

“They’re all struggling,” Sellers said. “They blame themselves but they are not to blame. They’re not victims. They are survivors.”

Multiple news organizations have reported that the Department of Homeland Security was investigating Foster when he killed himself.

A spokesperson for the federal agency could not be reached for comment.

Representatives of SLED and the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office said their agencies were not part of an investigation into Foster or Rockstar.