Loudoun County sexual assault victim files $30 million lawsuit against school board.
The Loudoun County student who was sexually assaulted in a high school restroom filed a $30 million federal lawsuit against the school district.
The girl, who is a minor and used a pseudonym in the filing, was 15 years old when a male student in a skirt sexually abused her in a bathroom at Stone Bridge High School on May 28, 2021.
Loudoun County Public Schools is accused of failing to take the warnings about the male student seriously and covering up the assault. The lawsuit is filed as a breach of Title IX.
“It’s been a very long two and a half years for my family to get here. We have put together a very strong Title IX lawsuit that we hope sets precedence across the nation to protect children and hold school districts accountable," Scott Smith, the girl's father who is also a plaintiff in the case, told WJLA.
The sexual assault sparked a national firestorm in education as parents began questioning policies allowing students to use restrooms of the opposite sex, citing in part the danger of sexual abuse. The perpetrator in the Loudoun case was simply moved to a different school with little discipline, and he would assault another girl only months later. He has been convicted for both assaults.
"This political motive to avoid acknowledgment of what happened to Jane Doe led to LCSB's failure to take remedial, supportive measures to provide her with a safe school environment after the sexual assault," the lawsuit reads.
The Smiths are being represented by Virginia Republican state Sen. Bill Stanley, who has represented the family for over a year. They are seeking $30 million and cite trauma and post-assault abuse from peers that resulted in a deprivation of an adequate education.
Smith was recently pardoned by Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R-VA) for charges related to his daughter's assault. He was arrested at an LCPS school board meeting for speaking out about his daughter's assault and accusing then-Superintendent Scott Ziegler of a cover-up. Smith was charged with obstruction of justice and disorderly conduct, but he no longer faces legal trouble.
A grand jury report later corroborated the cover-up and issued indictments against Ziegler, who has been terminated. Despite having been informed of a Loudoun County Sheriff's Department investigation into the assault, Ziegler "lied" and said there were no reports of assaults in restrooms, according to the lawsuit.
"I think it's important to keep our perspective on this. We've heard it several times tonight from our public speakers, but the predator transgender student or person simply does not exist," Ziegler went on to say at the school board meeting.
Ziegler was found guilty of a misdemeanor for illegally firing a teacher who testified before the grand jury investigating him.
The Loudoun County School Board told the Washington Examiner it does not comment on pending legal matters.
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