The family of a girl who was allegedly sexually assaulted in a school bathroom has filed a lawsuit against Loudoun County Public Schools claiming the district tried to cover up the incident.
The parents of the girl are seeking unspecified civil action against Loudoun County through the provisions of Title IX, according to the lawsuit, which was filed with the court on Thursday by the Stanley Law Group. The lawsuit alleges that due to “indifference” and “negligence” from the county public school system, what happened to their daughter in May was allowed to happen to a second girl in October by the “same assailant.”
“The sexual assault on our daughter and the subsequent sexual assault by the same individual were both predictable and preventable,” the parents said.
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The assailant was able to exploit the county public school system’s gender policy in place due to the fact that the county school system neglected to “institute even minimal safeguards” to protect students, the Smiths added.
“As a result, our daughter and our family has suffered, and continue to suffer, from the very real consequences of a policy that endangers the safety of every student,” they continued.
In the aftermath of the assault on May 28, the school system exacerbated the situation, authorizing a policy that would further expose vulnerable students to unsafe situations, Thursday’s statement from the law group added.
Policy 8040, approved by the school system in mid-August, allows students “to use the facility that corresponds to their consistently asserted gender identity.”
The Smiths also intend to fight the “wrongful and unconstitutional” charges against Scott Smith, the girl’s father who was arrested during a heated school board meeting, according to Stanley Law Group attorney Bill Stanley.
Smith was arrested on June 22 during a board meeting after alleging his daughter was raped and beaten at school in May. Smith was dragged from the meeting by in handcuffs, with his pants falling down and his lip bloodied. He was later charged with resisting arrest and disorderly conduct.
A second sexual assault incident allegedly occurred on Oct. 6 at the district’s Broad Run High School, in which a 15-year-old boy forced a female student into an empty classroom, held her there against her will, and inappropriately touched her, authorities said. That unidentified teenager was charged with sexual battery and abduction of a fellow student.
On Wednesday, the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office released a statement attempting to dispel “misinformation” regarding claims of cover-ups of administrators’ responses to the pair of alleged sexual assaults.
“Following the arrest on July 8, 2021, the judicial process was turned over to the Loudoun County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office to determine bail, or in the case of a juvenile, the continuance of detention or other legal restrictions set forth as part of court proceedings in the Loudoun County Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court,” the statement said. “As stated in both the current and former Memorandum of Understanding between the LCSO and Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS), the Loudoun Sheriff’s Office is not involved in school discipline (nor the placement of students). Nevertheless, the LCSO works closely with school officials throughout all criminal investigations.”
Smith also attempted to combat misrepresentations of himself in the press.
“While some in the media have tried to impugn my character, I am not a domestic terrorist,” Smith said in Thursday’s statement. “I am a concerned father who loves his family and will protect them at every turn.”
Loudoun County Public Schools said Friday afternoon that it is working on plans to “reduce the likelihood” that incidents similar to “recent events” will happen again.
“Let me say to the families and students involved, my heart aches for you, and I am sorry that we failed to provide the safe, welcoming, and affirming environment that we aspire to provide,” Scott Ziegler, the superintendent for Loudoun County Public Schools, said during the press conference.
The superintendent said that during the investigation proceedings, Loudoun County Public Schools has complied with the requirements detailed under Title IX but that administrators have found the entire process under Title IX to be “insufficient” when it comes to addressing issues of sexual assault and harassment. Ziegler, who has faced calls to resign from those who allege he and others engaged in cover-ups, called for more reform in addressing these issues.
Ziegler also apologized for comments that he made at the June 22 meeting, explaining that his remarks had been “misleading” and that he recognized they had caused “distress” to families.
Bill Stanley of the Stanley Law Group issued a statement in response to Ziegler’s press conference, noting the superintendent “said what we already knew” and that Loudoun County Public Schools are facing the situation because “it prioritized misguided policies of political correctness over student safety.”
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The board has made headlines for clashes between parents and administrators over the alleged sexual assaults, the district’s gender identity policy, and the teaching of critical race theory, which holds that U.S. institutions are fundamentally racist. Following the heated debates, some parents demanded the resignation of the district’s superintendent, and Attorney General Merrick Garland issued a memorandum on Oct. 4 directing the FBI to address “threats of violence” made toward educators and school board officials in the midst of parental frustrations over mask mandates, changes to curricula, and other controversial actions.
The Washington Examiner reached out to the school system and the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office but did not receive responses back.
