In response to lawsuit, Bellingham Public Schools denies failing to protect sexually abused students

Bellingham Public Schools denies that it failed to protect an autistic elementary school student from repeated sexual abuse by another student on the bus. It also denies that it failed to report the allegations to police or child protective services, as required by law.

The parents of a 10-year-old Wade King Elementary School student filed a civil lawsuit in Whatcom County Superior Court against Bellingham Public Schools on June 24. The parents’ lawsuit accuses the district of knowing that the 9-year-old male student had a documented history of sexually abusing other children on the school bus prior to abusing their 10-year-old son; that the district has a special protective relationship with the children in its care and was negligent and failed in its duties to protect the 10-year-old and other children from the 9-year-old; and that the district failed in its obligations to report the sexual abuse to law enforcement or child protective services officials, The Bellingham Herald previously reported.

All school district employees are mandatory reporters and are required by state law to report any suspected abuse or neglect of a child to law enforcement or the Washington State Department of Children, Youth & Families. State law requires that the report be made at the earliest opportunity, but no later than 48 hours after there is reasonable cause to believe that a child has suffered abuse or neglect.

The parents allege that their son has suffered and continues to suffer emotional, psychological and other harm because of the district’s failures, and that their relationship with him has been damaged. They are seeking general and special punitive damages, reasonable attorney fees and costs, and any other damages the court deems just and appropriate, according to the records.

In its response to the July 18 lawsuit, the school district denied any liability and denied that it failed in its duty to protect the 10-year-old and other children from the 9-year-old, court documents show.

The Herald has contacted Bellingham Public Schools, the district’s attorneys and the parents’ attorney for comment.

Disclaimer

While the school district acknowledged that both students attended Wade King Elementary School for the 2022-2023 school year, the school district said it did not have enough information to confirm or deny that the 9-year-old had a history of sexually abusing other students on Bellingham Public Schools buses.

Court documents show the district and its staff knew the 9-year-old boy was accused of abusing two other children in the approximately four-month period prior to when the 9-year-old boy allegedly repeatedly sexually abused the 10-year-old boy.

In October 2022, the 9-year-old was accused of sexually abusing another student while the pair were on a bus. The district’s response denied that it and its staff were aware of the abuse. The district also said it did not have enough information to confirm or deny whether the child’s parents had reported the allegations to the district, court records state.

The district denied that it failed to take “reasonably prudent” measures after the alleged October 2022 assault. It also denied that it asked the bus driver to assign older students to sit next to the 9-year-old, or that the district failed to inform those students and their parents that they were accompanying the 9-year-old to prevent him from sexually abusing other students, court documents state.

The district denied allegations that the 9-year-old boy raped a second student while on the bus and a safety plan was in place, records show. The district said it did not have enough information to confirm or deny whether that child’s parents reported the allegations to the district, court records show.

The school district also denies that it failed to take action following the revelations about the two attacks, the school district’s response said.

Title IX Investigation

The district denied that the 10-year-old and 9-year-old children were on the bus and sat next to each other about six times over a four-month period in the spring of 2023, with the 9-year-old accused of repeatedly sexually abusing and raping the 10-year-old. The district also said it did not have enough information to confirm or deny that the 10-year-old’s parents reported the sexual abuse to the district and law enforcement, records show.

His parents’ lawsuit reveals that the school district launched a Title IX investigation into the 10-year-old boy’s allegations sometime after early June 2023.

The district’s Title IX investigator advised the district’s executive director to conclude that the 9-year-old student’s actions constituted sexual harassment, The Herald previously reported.

A second allegation in the district’s Title IX investigation alleged that the 10-year-old boy reported to school officials multiple previous incidents prior to early June 2023 in which the 9-year-old student sexually assaulted him while they were on the bus.

Bus footage reviewed by district investigators shows the two students were together six times over a one-month period in the spring of 2023. While nothing in the footage — which does not show what happened on the bus seats — explicitly shows sexual misconduct, there are “details in the footage that match details that support the allegations and stories” of both the 10-year-old student and other witnesses, the parents’ lawsuit says.

The Title IX investigator advised the district’s decision maker to conclude that the 9-year-old boy repeatedly sexually abused the 10-year-old child in the spring of 2023 while they were on a bus, court documents show.

In Thursday’s response to the parents’ lawsuit, the school district said the Title IX report speaks for itself, court documents show.

Dismissal requested

Court documents show the school district denies that its actions or any failure to act were the direct or proximate cause of the 10-year-old boy’s emotional and psychological problems, or of any damage to the parents’ relationship with their son.

The school district also denied that it failed in its duty to protect the boy and other students from the 9-year-old, and that it could not reasonably have foreseen that the 9-year-old would sexually abuse the 10-year-old.

Court documents show the district denies that it and its staff failed to meet their mandatory reporting requirements.

The school district alleges that the injuries and damages suffered by the 10-year-old boy and his parents were not the school district’s fault, but instead were caused by the “intentional acts of a third party,” the documents say.

The district also argues that investigative documents submitted as part of discovery in the lawsuit could show that the boy and his parents “failed to mitigate their damages,” according to court documents.

The district has asked the court to dismiss the lawsuit with prejudice and award the district costs and fees from the lawsuit. If the lawsuit is not dismissed by the court, the district has requested a jury trial, records show.

Previous reporting errors

The parents’ lawsuit was filed about seven months after three Bellingham Public Schools administrators settled criminal cases against them. The parents alleged they failed to report repeated sexual abuse of a Squalicum High School student to police or child welfare, The Herald previously reported.

In that case, all three administrators were charged with one count of failure to report, a misdemeanor. They entered into a deferred prosecution agreement on December 5, under which the Whatcom County Prosecutor’s Office agreed to continue the criminal cases for about 90 days while the administrators performed community service. After that, the Prosecutor’s Office said it would drop the charges against all three administrators.

Court records show that the Public Prosecution Service dismissed the cases against the three administrators in early January.

The student who reported the sexual assaults to school officials filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against the district on Dec. 7, 2022. Federal court records show her lawsuit is still pending.

The student, who dropped out of high school and transferred to another school, accuses the school district in her lawsuit of violating her federal Title IX rights, neglecting its duty to protect and care for her, and neglecting its duty to report the sexual assaults to police.

She had previously sought $1 million in damages from the district before filing the federal lawsuit, The Herald previously reported.

The district denied mishandling the student’s reports in its January 2023 response to the federal lawsuit. The district said it took reasonable steps to stop the reported harassment, that the sexual assault allegations in the student’s lawsuit were not reported to administrators, and that the behavior reported to them did not constitute abuse or neglect under state law.

Sources

▪ Brigid Collins Family Support Center: 360-734-4616, brigidcollins.org

The professionals at the Brigid Collins Family Support Center are available Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. to answer questions about children, families, abuse prevention, or treatment. You can call (360) 734-4616.

▪ Child protection: Washington State Child Abuse and Neglect Hotline: 866-829-2153.

▪ Domestic Violence and Sexual Abuse Services: 24-hour helpline: 360-715-1563, email: [email protected].

▪ Lummi victims of crime: 360-312-2015.

▪ Tl’ils Ta’á’altha victims of crime: 360-325-3310 or nooksacktribe.org/departments/youth-family-services/tlils-taaaltha-victims-of-crime-program/

▪ Bellingham Police: You can call anonymously at 360-778-8611 or go online to cob.org/tips.

▪ WWU Consultation and Support for Survivors of Sexual Abuse: 360-650-3700 or wp.wwu.edu/sexualviolence/.

If you or a child are in immediate danger, call 112 and report the incident to the police.

To report child abuse or neglect, call 1-866-END HARM.