On September 19, 2023, the guardian of a 13-year-old female victim filed a lawsuit for sexual assault at John Muir K-8 Academy. The lawsuit alleges that the administration failed to take the necessary measures to prevent the male student from sexually assaulted the female student on campus. According to the lawsuit, the female student was attacked in May. She was heading to the school office to be picked up because she was feeling sick when the male student called her name and started to walk with her down the stairwell. The male student started to make sexual advances, but the female student rejected them. This is when the male student moved the female student into a blind spot in the stairwell, grabbed her throat, knocked her onto the ground, and sexually assaulted her. The lawsuit claims that the female student suffered physical, psychological, and emotional damages as a result of the sexual assault.
It is also important to note that the lawsuit states that the school (that is, teachers and administrators) knew of the male student’s troubling history, so much that they created a text message chain to alert one another when the student was out of class for over five minutes (which is when they alerted security).
In summary, the lawsuit claims that the district should have done more to prevent the sexual assault incident, especially since they knew that the male student had a history of causing different problems on campus.
Unfortunately, sexual abuse at schools is very common. Schools repeatedly fail to keep students safe on campus, resulting in sexual assault incidents that have lasting physical, mental, and emotional consequences. If your child was sexually assaulted at John Muir K-8 Academy, at any other LBUSD school, or at any other school in any other district, it is important that you understand that there are legal options available to you.
Here at the Normandie Law Firm, our lawyers are more than ready to provide you and your family with the guidance that you need to understand your right to sue and recover the compensation that you are owed. If you are ready to speak with a lawyer about the legal options available to you, contact us today. Our team is more than ready to help you with your school sexual abuse claim.
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Sex Abuse at Schools has Lasting Consequences
Parents expect their children to be safe while they are at school. Unfortunately, other students on campus can present a significant risk to students. In addition, teachers and other school staff could also pose a risk to students. When a student is sexually assaulted, the victim is likely to suffer physical harm; however, victims are likely to suffer mental and emotional harm as well as a result of the abuse. Examples of the harm that victims of sexual abuse can suffer include the following:
- Unwanted pregnancies
- Sexually transmitted infections
- Injuries to genitals
- Injuries to reproductive organs
- Fractures, lacerations, scrapes, bruises, and other injuries (especially if there was a struggle or if the attacker used force)
- Post-traumatic stress
- Fear
- Panic
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Increased risk of developing drug abuse problems
- Increased risk of self-harm, including suicide
Liability for School Sexual Abuse
Can the school district be liable for the sexual abuse that a student suffers on campus? The fact is that that the school district could certainly be liable for student sexual abuse – whether the sexual abuse was committed by school staff or by another student. This is because the school district has the duty to keep all their students safe. When they are aware of a hazard represented by another student, then they must take the necessary measures to prevent incidents (i.e., making sure that the student that represents a risk is always supervised, properly reporting incidents, properly responding to incidents, suspending/expelling students, etc.). When they fail to prevent sexual abuse incidents, they can be liable and could be held accountable.
Can I sue the school district for sexual abuse? Yes – whether you are the parent of a student that was sexually abused at school or you are a former student that was sexually abused at the school, you could have grounds to file a lawsuit. For more information about the legal options available to you, we urge you to seek legal assistance with the experts here at our law firm as soon as possible.
Compensation Available for School Sexual Abuse Claims
If your school sexual abuse claim is ultimately successful, you could be entitled to receive compensation. Although every claim is different, it is important to be familiar with the different categories of compensation that exist for these types of cases. These categories include the following:
- Medical expenses
- Lost income
- Pain and suffering
- Treble damages
- Punitive damages
- Legal fees
The most common questions we get consist of possible case value. How much is my school sexual abuse claim worth? How much can I get from my lawsuit for child sex abuse at a school? What is the average value of cases similar to mine? In general, these cases can be worth upwards of $750,000 million and often reach multi-million amounts. This is because sexual assault often leads to permanent harm. In additions, some cases are eligible for treble damages due to cover-ups (this triples the total value of the claim).
Here at our law firm, one of the first steps we take is evaluating every details of the incident to determine the potential value of the claim. Our team then does everything possible to reach the maximum recovery possible, whether it is through a settlement or a trial verdict. If you allow our sexual abuse lawyers to handle your claim, you can be certain that our lawyers will get you the payout that you are owed.
Contact the Normandie Law Firm Today
Whether you are ready to file your lawsuit or you are looking for information before you make the decision to file, we urge you to contact us at your earliest convenience. Here at the Normandie Law Firm, our lawyers have decades of experience handling all sorts of personal injury claims, including sexual abuse claims against school districts. We understand how difficult it can be for victims and their families to take action and seek justice, so we are committed to making the legal process as simple as possible for all. Because of this, we offer free legal services. Our free legal services include free consultations and free second opinions; our lawsuit lawyers will be available to answer all your questions and provide you with all the information that you need to begin or continue your claim. Our lawyers are not afraid to take on any LBUSD, LAUSD, or any school district to fight to protect the rights of victims of school sexual abuse.
We offer a Zero-Fee Guarantee, so you will never be required to pay any upfront legal fees for our legal services. In addition, we work on a strict contingency structure, so our clients will never have to worry about paying any legal costs if they do not win their case.
If you are ready to speak with our experts of school sexual abuse lawsuits, contact us today.
Other Pages on Our Website Related to This Topic
Special Education Teacher Aide Arrested for Child Sexual Abuse
Sexual Assault in a Gym Shower or Bath – Lawyer for Sexual Abuse Victims
