Fairfax County Public Schools Face Lawsuit

When a 16-year old girl was assaulted in the back of a bus by an older boy on an Oakton High School band trip to Indiana, her world as she knew it was over. She waited until the 5-day trip was over before reporting it to an adult, however she allegedly told four of her friends that were also on the trip. The girl’s lawyer, Adele Kimmel, stated that school leaders initially ignored reports of the attack, then interrogated the girl without the knowledge of the parents.

When ABC7’s Tim Barber asked Kimmel why the girl or her family didn’t immediately go to the police following the incident, he was told that the girl was in shock and didn’t know what to do.

The lawsuit even claims that a district employee told the girl, “nothing would happen [if] you try to go to court.” According to Kimmel, this has been the overarching attitude that the school has portrayed. “[The school system] is more concerned about its own image and its own reputation than it is about student safety,” she said. “They were supposed to make clear sexual harassment policies and procedures and make sure the procedures were clear to all families and students.”

Kimmel’s statement is referring to a notice the district received in 2014, stating that it was in violation of the federal education law dealing with sexual harassment. This notice was prompted by an alleged sexual harassment case involving students.

The federal education law in question is Title IX. According to Title IX for Survivors, “Title IX is a federal law prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sex in education. Title IX addresses sexual violence and requires schools to proactively address, remedy, and eliminate sexual violence on their campus.” Schools that fail to address sexual violence proactively can face potential Title IX complaints.

Many news sources are referring to the victim as “Jane Doe.” According to Not Guilty Adams, the names of juveniles are commonly withheld in news reports because of their age and the sensitive nature of legal matters.

“Jane Doe” claims that she was forced to live in fear after the assault, claiming, “I was around my attacker and the administration that hadn’t done anything to help… My grades were severely impacted, and I was just kind of miserable for a lot of the time.”

A lawsuit was pursued instead of a Department of Education complaint because the family felt a lawsuit would result in more systematic changes.

Fairfax County Public Schools released the following statement in relation to the lawsuit: “The lawsuit is currently under review. As a general matter, FCPS takes all allegations of Title IX violations seriously, investigates those allegations and takes action where appropriate, including referrals to law enforcement for possible criminal prosecution. These procedures are outlined in FCPS regulations. Due to the legal issues concerning student privacy and personnel we cannot provide further details or comment on the allegations contained in the lawsuit.”