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The mother of a male student who attends school in the Klein Independent School District (KISD) has filed a federal lawsuit on claims the north Harris County ISD didn't respond after her son was allegedly sexually assaulted at school, according to a report from Houston ABC affiliate KTRK. Court documents assert that KISD failed to notify police about the incident.
KTRK reported that the complaint implicates numerous employees, including the administration at the boy's school. Though the student was subjected to severe bullying and harassment a year before the incident, the original petition explains, his complaints apparently fell on deaf ears.
According to KTRK, legal counsel representing the boy and his mother allege the bullying continued up to when the in-classroom sexual assault occurred.
The suit says a substitute teacher who was assigned to the room at that time took the student to see the school nurse, the station reported.
The boy and his mother subsequently went to the hospital where a pair of physicians confirmed that he was a victim of sexual assault, the suit says.
The plaintiffs' attorneys further accuse KISD of not separating the alleged abuser from the pre-adolescent victim, KTRK reported.
The suit claims the school district declined to grant the family's requests to switch classes.
It additionally insinuates that KISD's purported lack of action enabled the boy's classmates to continue bullying him.
According to the suit, KTRK reported, the boy's mental health began to decline since the alleged incident.
The suit seeks $75,000 in damages, the station reported.
KISD reportedly hasn't formally responded to the litigation, but has issued a statement in which it said it investigates all forms of purported misconduct, KTRK reported.
"While we do not comment on pending litigation, providing a safe environment for all students is always the district's highest priority," the school district said in the statement. "Allegations of misconduct, including but not limited to alleged bullying, assault of any kind or harassment, are always fully investigated by school administration and, if criminal conduct has been alleged, by the Klein ISD Police Department. Students found to have engaged in misconduct receive consequences in accordance with the Student Code of Conduct and the District Attorney's Office."