On January 14, 2010, Jeanne Dunaway and Teresa Terrell, vice principals at Sparkman Middle School near Huntsville, Alabama, received a complaint that a male student had touched a girl inappropriately. The subject of the complaint was no stranger to this kind of allegation. He had been accused of predatory sexual advances fifteen times in the recent past. The latest complaint resulted in the boy being placed on "in-school suspension."
A couple of days later, teacher's aide June Simpson spoke to principal Ronnie Blair about the boy. According to Simpson, he had "repeatedly tried to convince girls to have sex with him in the boy's bathroom on the special needs students' corridor. The teacher's aide reported that the young predator had actually engaged in sex with one of the girls.
Because the boy and the female special needs student denied having sex in the boy's restroom the principal informed the teacher's aide that because the kids had not been caught in the act his hands were tied. The concerned teacher's aide recommended that school officials keep a close eye on this boy.
On January 22, 2010 a 14-year-old girl who wasn't physically or mentally handicapped but took special education classes told teacher's aide Simpson that the alleged schoolboy sex fiend had been pestering her to have restroom sex with him. Simpson asked the girl if she'd be willing to act as bait in a plan to catch the sexual predator. The girl refused to participate in the sting, then changed her mind.
The teacher's aide, accompanied by the girl, laid out her plan to vice principal Dunaway who didn't endorse or approve of it. The vice principal didn't forbid the execution of the scheme either. The plan was this: the girl would agree to have sex with the boy in the special needs bathroom where teachers would be hiding to confront the kid before things got out of hand.
Shortly after leaving the vice principal's office the girl encountered the young predator in the hallway. She agreed to have sex with him. But instead of getting together in the special needs restroom he told her to meet him in the sixth-grade boy's bathroom in another part of the school. The girl did not have time to alert the teacher's aide of the change in plans.
In the sixth-grade boy's restroom, with no teachers hiding nearby to intervene, the girl rejected the boy's advances. Unable to fight him off, he raped her.
After the victim reported the crime to a teacher, police officers were summoned to the school. They took the girl to the National Children's Advocacy Center in Huntsville where medical personnel used a rape kit to gather physical evidence. Hospital personnel also photographed signs of trauma consistent with the girl's rape allegation.
The young suspect, when confronted with the accusation, claimed he had only kissed the girl.
After the alleged rape victim refused to cooperate with detectives, the police department turned the case over to the Madison County District Attorney's Office. Without the victim's testimony, an eyewitness, or the boy's confession, prosecutors closed the case for lack of evidence.
Pursuant to an internal administrative inquiry into the incident, vice principal Terrell testified that after seeing photographs of the girl's injuries she didn't know whether or not the sex had been consensual. Vice Principal Dunaway testified that when the girl willingly entered the sixth-grade restroom with the boy she was on her own.
In the school's final disciplinary report on the matter, the incident in the school restroom was described as the "inappropriate touching of a female." The principal suspended the boy for five days. Following the suspension the kid spent fifteen days at an alternative institution before returning to the Sparkman Middle School.
The 14-year-old girl withdrew from the Sparkman Middle School. After extensive counseling she ended up in North Carolina with her mother. Upon her mother's death shortly thereafter the girl and her brother were placed in Child Protection Services.
June Simpson, the Sparkman teacher's aide, resigned not long after the incident. Her attorney described her as a scapegoat in the case.
In October 2010 the girl's father filed a Title IX "Jane Doe" lawsuit in federal court against the boy, school administrators, the teacher's aide and the Madison County School Board. Title IX is a federal law aimed at ending gender discrimination in public education.
A few months after the filing of the lawsuit a U.S. District Court Judge tossed out the claim against the boy because he was a minor. The judge also threw out the Title IX portion of the action. He did allow, however, the claim of negligence against the teacher's aide and the school administrators. Attorney Eric Artrip appealed the lower court ruling to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit in Atlanta.
On September 17, 2014 the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Department of Education filed amicus briefs (friend of the court arguments) in support of attorney Artrip's appeal of the Title IX rejection.
The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in August 2015 overturned the district court ruling against the student used as sexual assault bait. That meant that "Jane Doe" could proceed with a lawsuit against the school system
In March 2016 the Madison County School System settled the "Jane Doe" suit for an undisclosed amount.
A couple of days later, teacher's aide June Simpson spoke to principal Ronnie Blair about the boy. According to Simpson, he had "repeatedly tried to convince girls to have sex with him in the boy's bathroom on the special needs students' corridor. The teacher's aide reported that the young predator had actually engaged in sex with one of the girls.
Because the boy and the female special needs student denied having sex in the boy's restroom the principal informed the teacher's aide that because the kids had not been caught in the act his hands were tied. The concerned teacher's aide recommended that school officials keep a close eye on this boy.
On January 22, 2010 a 14-year-old girl who wasn't physically or mentally handicapped but took special education classes told teacher's aide Simpson that the alleged schoolboy sex fiend had been pestering her to have restroom sex with him. Simpson asked the girl if she'd be willing to act as bait in a plan to catch the sexual predator. The girl refused to participate in the sting, then changed her mind.
The teacher's aide, accompanied by the girl, laid out her plan to vice principal Dunaway who didn't endorse or approve of it. The vice principal didn't forbid the execution of the scheme either. The plan was this: the girl would agree to have sex with the boy in the special needs bathroom where teachers would be hiding to confront the kid before things got out of hand.
Shortly after leaving the vice principal's office the girl encountered the young predator in the hallway. She agreed to have sex with him. But instead of getting together in the special needs restroom he told her to meet him in the sixth-grade boy's bathroom in another part of the school. The girl did not have time to alert the teacher's aide of the change in plans.
In the sixth-grade boy's restroom, with no teachers hiding nearby to intervene, the girl rejected the boy's advances. Unable to fight him off, he raped her.
After the victim reported the crime to a teacher, police officers were summoned to the school. They took the girl to the National Children's Advocacy Center in Huntsville where medical personnel used a rape kit to gather physical evidence. Hospital personnel also photographed signs of trauma consistent with the girl's rape allegation.
The young suspect, when confronted with the accusation, claimed he had only kissed the girl.
After the alleged rape victim refused to cooperate with detectives, the police department turned the case over to the Madison County District Attorney's Office. Without the victim's testimony, an eyewitness, or the boy's confession, prosecutors closed the case for lack of evidence.
Pursuant to an internal administrative inquiry into the incident, vice principal Terrell testified that after seeing photographs of the girl's injuries she didn't know whether or not the sex had been consensual. Vice Principal Dunaway testified that when the girl willingly entered the sixth-grade restroom with the boy she was on her own.
In the school's final disciplinary report on the matter, the incident in the school restroom was described as the "inappropriate touching of a female." The principal suspended the boy for five days. Following the suspension the kid spent fifteen days at an alternative institution before returning to the Sparkman Middle School.
The 14-year-old girl withdrew from the Sparkman Middle School. After extensive counseling she ended up in North Carolina with her mother. Upon her mother's death shortly thereafter the girl and her brother were placed in Child Protection Services.
June Simpson, the Sparkman teacher's aide, resigned not long after the incident. Her attorney described her as a scapegoat in the case.
In October 2010 the girl's father filed a Title IX "Jane Doe" lawsuit in federal court against the boy, school administrators, the teacher's aide and the Madison County School Board. Title IX is a federal law aimed at ending gender discrimination in public education.
A few months after the filing of the lawsuit a U.S. District Court Judge tossed out the claim against the boy because he was a minor. The judge also threw out the Title IX portion of the action. He did allow, however, the claim of negligence against the teacher's aide and the school administrators. Attorney Eric Artrip appealed the lower court ruling to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit in Atlanta.
On September 17, 2014 the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Department of Education filed amicus briefs (friend of the court arguments) in support of attorney Artrip's appeal of the Title IX rejection.
The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in August 2015 overturned the district court ruling against the student used as sexual assault bait. That meant that "Jane Doe" could proceed with a lawsuit against the school system
In March 2016 the Madison County School System settled the "Jane Doe" suit for an undisclosed amount.
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