MEMORANDUM OPINION issued December 23, 2021 in civil litigation regarding 2018 rape of football players in Damascus High School locker room.
Excerpts:
This case arises from student-on-student assaults that allegedly occurred in a locker room
at Damascus High School (“DHS”), located in Damascus, Maryland. Plaintiffs1
, student victims
(“Minor-Plaintiffs”) and their parents (“Parent-Plaintiffs”) bring this civil action against
Defendants Montgomery County Board of Education (“Board”) and
Jeffrey Sullivan,
Casey Crouse, Vincent Colbert,
Eric Wallich, and Joseph Doody, in their official and individual
capacities (collectively, “Defendants”)2 based on their purported failure to implement appropriate
supervisory policies and properly investigate claims of abuse while the Minor-Plaintiffs were
members of the DHS junior varsity football team...
...Minor-Plaintiffs include Doe #1M, a then-freshman member of the JV team, who was
allegedly sexually assaulted by his teammates with a broom in August 2017, and Does #2M, 3M,
4M, three then-freshman members of the JV team, who were allegedly sexually assaulted by
teammates with a broom on October 31, 2018. Plaintiffs submit that Defendants facilitated the
assaults by allowing certain student-athletes to have “free reign” in the locker room, despite
complaints from teachers and parents about the abusive environment that existed there. One player
responsible for the October 2018 attack, known as “---”, was known to have a lengthy
disciplinary history, which included physical assaults against teachers and students at other
Montgomery County schools, causing him to be suspended from those schools based on his violent
acts...
...According to Plaintiffs, prior to 2017, certain incidents of hazing took place in high school
locker rooms at Montgomery County Public Schools (“MCPS”) other than DHS. Does #1–3 Am.
Compl. ¶ 13.
3 Following those incidents, MCPS circulated written documentation to school
administrators and coaches regarding such assaults. Id. ¶¶ 19–20. Despite this written notice,
students at two different MCPS high schools (neither DHS) were subsequently assaulted in similar
fashion. Id. ¶¶ 13, 16. At that point, in July 2018, Defendant Sullivan issued a memorandum to
Montgomery County athletic directors and coaches, stressing the MCPS student-athlete
supervision policy, which specifically addressed the matter of hazing. Id. ¶ 22. That same
summer, at a meeting of MCPS athletic directors, MCPS emphasized the importance of adequate
supervision of school locker rooms...
...Plaintiffs make numerous allegations of sexual abuse committed in the DHS locker room,
none of which, they submit, were adequately addressed by authority figures at the school. They
cite at least one incident occurring in 2016, in which “Victim 1,” a freshman member of the JV
football team, fought off sophomores who attempted to rape, sexually assault, and batter him. Id.
¶ 45. The 2017 football season purportedly brought more incidents of abuse of victims, including
brooming incidents with at least six freshman victims, including Doe #1M. Id. ¶¶ 46–47.
Allegedly, a report of sexual misconduct in the locker room was made directly to Defendant
Crouse, then principal of DHS, by a parent, identified as XX...
...No coaches, athletic directors, or administrators, as of that time, immediately contacted
law enforcement. Id. ¶¶ 169–179. Instead, Defendant Colbert asked other JV players to investigate
the report. Id. ¶ 170. Additionally, Defendant Crouse and her administration undertook an internal
investigation into the incident, which in fact revealed that there had been multiple victims and
multiple perpetrators. Id. ¶ 179. A school resource officer, however, instructed Defendant Crouse
to terminate her investigation and contacted the Special Victims Unit of the Montgomery County
Police Department. Id. ¶¶ 179–80. Despite this instruction, Defendant Crouse and the DHS
administration continued investigating the incident reports on their own, including conducting
interviews with multiple students. Id...
...Plaintiffs state that Defendant Crouse not only ignored warnings
about JCA, but also that she testified at a grand jury hearing that she never reviewed ---’s file to
determine if safeguards were necessary. Id. Almost immediately following his arrival at DHS,
DHS personnel complained to Defendant Crouse and to the DHS football staff that JCA was
exhibiting disruptive, inappropriate, and violent behavior...
JOHN DOE #1, JANE DOE #1 JO... by Parents' Coalition of Montg...
