Councilmember Sayles and Luedtke - FYI: The former @mcps Damascus High School principal is hardly "just on the books," she is now an expert advisor to MCPS.

At the Montgomery County Council's joint committee hearing yesterday on the Inspector General's report on the investigation of MCPS' promotion practices, one topic that came up was how MCPS has been known to remove principals and other staff from schools and place them in the MCPS human relations department.  

Councilmember Luedtke's questioning gave the impression that MCPS just puts staff in HR as a bookkeeping formality and that the staff placed in human resources who are involved in controversial school matters are "just on the books."

Earlier in the hearing, Councilmember Sayles had asked about the status of the former Damascus High School principal and coach who were at the school during the time of the football locker room hazing and rape incidents.  

MCPS administrator April L. Key, Chief, Human Resources and Development, responded to questioning that yes, the former Damascus High School principal and coach at the time of the hazing rape incidents were still employed by MCPS. 

What Ms. Key did not relate is that not only is the former Damascus High School principal still employed by MCPS, still listed as working for the Office of Human Resources and Development, but she is also now considered an expert on sexual harassment claims and is advising MCPS on the corrective action plan.  

The former Damascus High School principal is hardly "just on the books," she is now an expert advisor to MCPS.  

People assigned to HR that are "just on the books."  

 

Sayles: "This past September MCPS was ordered to pay what was reported to be the largest settlement of its kind in the state.  Nearly $10 million dollars to the four victims of the 2017 - 2018 football hazing sexual assault case at Damascus High School.  Is the Coach and Principal still employed by MCPS, that was there during that time frame?

Key: "Yes, they are."

 

BREAKING: Dec. '21 US Dist. Court Opinion: Damascus HS Plaintiffs state that Defendant [Principal] Crouse... testified at a grand jury hearing that she never reviewed ---’s file to determine if safeguards were necessary. #DamascusHighSchool #Rape

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...

MCPS Report: Only Talked to One Focus Group at Damascus HS and 9 Other High School Students

Comment on MCPS report on hazing and rape at Damascus High School:

A total of 2 student focus groups, one at DHS and another with 9 high school students (not sure where they came from).
Regardless, I would have spoken to way more kids than this.  And given the nature of the inquiry and sensitive questions, I probably would have interviewed a lot of kids one-on-one.  I love focus groups.  But in one it is easy for individuals not to reveal things because they don't want the others in the group to know what they know or what may have happened to them.  In all honesty, in a focus group, do "we" actually think a macho football player is going to say, "Yeah, they hazed me and raped me with a broom."  Not happening.  ~ Joseph Hawkins

...The report’s authors acknowledged that no comprehensive, historical review was done of unreported incidents and that no districtwide survey was conducted for the analysis.

Five high schools were examined in the sprawling suburban system, which has 25 high schools and is the largest in Maryland.

Still, it said, “the few extracurricular-associated hazing and bullying incidents of which we became aware appeared to be isolated events, rather than part of a larger, continuing pattern.”..

..."We conducted interviews and focus groups at DHS and at a sampling of other MCPS high schools. At DHS, we interviewed 29 individuals, including administrators, staff members, coaches, parents, and after-school activity sponsors. In addition, we conducted a student focus group. Beyond DHS, we conducted focus-group discussions at four other high schools in different areas of Montgomery County: Seneca Valley High School, Montgomery Blair High School, Walt Whitman High School, and Walter Johnson High School. Those discussions included principals, assistant principals, business administrators, athletic directors, coaches, and extracurricular sponsors. We also conducted four focus groups with staff from across the district: two with MCPS athletic directors (eleven athletic directors in total), one with seven MCPS principals, and one with nine MCPS high school students. Additionally, we spoke with key administrators from the MCPS central office, including Superintendent Smith, members of the District’s senior leadership team, the Chief Safety Officer, the Director of Systemwide Athletics, and representatives from the Office of School Support and Improvement. We also met on two occasions with the Montgomery County State’s Attorney and members of his Office to inform them of the scope of our review and our preliminary findings. We did not interview any victims from the DHS incident, any of the alleged perpetrators, or any of their families (though we did review documents related to the criminal prosecutions), and we otherwise strove to keep our review separate from the investigation by the State’s Attorney’s Office."..

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/report-hazing-does-not-appear-widespread-in-sampling-of-maryland-high-schools/2019/10/07/51040e7e-e8a9-11e9-85c0-85a098e47b37_story.html?fbclid=IwAR3-vD8lGPGusaIb2GMNiNGlqnLpVSoYlW6MjuAfhD4_xNCwfsIfNaVBTiY

"School leaders determined the teen was so prone to acting out that he needed to be kept in class until the end of each passing period." [But was allowed to be unsupervised after school and on the football team.]

ROCKVILLE, Md. (ABC7) — The juvenile suspect — also known as the so-called ringleader in the Damascus High School locker room sexual assaults — will be tried as a juvenile due, in large part, to ADHD.

Montgomery County Circuit Court Judge Steven Salant issued his controversial ruling Thursday morning following nearly seven hours of court proceedings Tuesday. Those proceedings ran like a full-blown trial, during which, attorney Dan Wright crafted a defense grounded in his teenage client’s “extreme ADHD.”..

...“This was a premeditated, planned attack,” Woodward added. “And this wasn’t the first time The evidence shows the defendant was part of a similar attack earlier in the year.”

In fact, during a summer football practice — only a few months before the rape case — the suspect allegedly tried to “broom” a different teammate, but that player managed to break away. The revelation added fuel to the notion that hazing and “brooming” are tradition within Damascus’ revered football program.

Prosecutors also took time to highlight the suspect's “atrocious” school and juvenile criminal records...

...The suspect's Montgomery County Public Schools Record:

In the fall of 2014, he enrolled as a sixth grader at Rocky Hill Middle School in Clarksburg. Almost immediately, the then 11-year-old began to misbehave. By the time police arrested him in the pending broomstick case — some four years later — MCPS had given the suspect 11 suspensions, 61 disciplinary referrals and sent 141 communications home regarding poor conduct. The transgressions included sexual comments, inappropriate touching, threatening remarks, fights, and chronic class cutting...

...In fact, MCPS conducted multiple Functional Behavior Assessments (FBA) and Behavior Intervention Plans (BIP) for the suspect's benefit. School leaders determined the teen was so prone to acting out that he needed to be kept in class until the end of each passing period. That helped limit the number of hallway distractions. An adult escort was also recommended as an alternative option for the suspect to safely move from class to class...

...Judge Salant also took shots at MCPS for attempting to control the suspect's numerous symptoms, but not seeking to excavate the root cause of that disruptive behavior.

"They wanted him to follow the student code of conduct, but he can't do it... There's clearly a lack of impulse control."..

Fighting Words From the Father of One Victim:

...Following repeated requests, the victim's father says he is scheduled to meet with MCPS Superintendent Jack Smith on the afternoon Friday, March 29. The victim's father explained the meeting will be 45 minutes long. No attorneys are allowed to attend, and the discussion cannot delve into topics of negligence, liability or responsibility...

...The victim's father further shared that two of the four victims are the sons of Montgomery County Police officers, one having recently retired from the force. He believes the suspects — the suspect in particular — hand picked the victims due to their law enforcement ties.

For example, weeks before the locker room attacks, the suspect reportedly stole a gold chain from the son of one officer. Damascus head football coach Eric Wallich threatened to call the police if the chain was not returned. In another instance, the suspect demanded that same boy stop wearing a police department Maryland Special Olympics t-shirt.

"Take the fu----- shirt off! Fu-- the police! Fu-- Montgomery County," the suspect allegedly shouted during the heated ordeal.

“There’s no doubt that two of the victims were targeted because they’re sons of law enforcement...The act of inserting a broom in another man’s rectum is done to degrade and demoralize, retaliate, to injure, to destroy their self-esteem.”..

Prosecuting Judge Salant's Ruling:

...Maryland law prohibits prosecutors from appealing Judge Salant's ruling. Instead, McCarthy expects the juvenile court to sentence the suspect to less than one year. The types of discipline can include a detention center, house arrest, community service, among others.

“I challenge you to call the Department of Corrections to find out how many kids are incarcerated — or being detained in any juvenile facility in the state — who are 19, 20 or 21 years old. I’m going tell you, I think it’s going to be less than five.”

https://wjla.com/news/local/so-called-ringleader-in-damascus-hs-rapes-to-be-tried-as-juvenile-victims-outraged

Father of Damascus High JV Football Player Says MCPS Not Transparent Enough as Investigation into Alleged Hazing Incident Continues

...However, a parent of a JV football player who attended the Monday meeting told the press afterward he believes MCPS administration, specifically Principal Casey Crouse, has contributed to the distress Smith described.

The parent, who declined to provide his name for fear of retaliation against his son, said Crouse gathered the JV football players following the arrests and told them, “It’s all your fault.”
Crouse could not immediately be reached for comment Monday afternoon.

“It was hard because when you’re coming home, hearing from your kid that the principal told them they’re all guilty, we’re trying to figure out, ‘Well, are you?’ ” the parent said. “So we try to figure out where they were and … then we get a subpoena a couple days later. You’re worried for the whole JV team.”..

https://bethesdamagazine.com/bethesda-beat/schools/father-of-damascus-high-jv-football-player-says-mcps-not-transparent-enough-as-investigation-into-alleged-hazing-incident-continues/

Scott Abraham ‏ @ScottABC7 I've covered high school football for 15 years. I HAVE NEVER experienced anything like tonight. Media restrictions galore. It was a circus.

I've covered high school football for 15 years. I HAVE NEVER experienced anything like tonight. Media restrictions galore. It was a circus.

I'm disappointed.

Oh yeah, the streak is over. Damascus loses for the first time in 53 games.@mcpsAD @DHS_Principal @MCPSAthletics pic.twitter.com/74uxxF0geS

— Scott Abraham (@ScottABC7) November 17, 2018

WPOST: Montgomery County should seriously address allegations of rape at Damascus High School

...The system’s subsequent disclosure of a hazing incident in September at Seneca Valley High School in Germantown involving a physical assault in a locker room suggests there indeed may be systemic issues that need to be addressed. Hazing and bullying are not uncommon in youth sports, thought they often go unreported by victims who feel humiliated or embarrassed. But what is alleged to have taken place at Damascus is extreme...

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/montgomery-county-should-seriously-address-allegations-of-rape-at-damascus-high-school/2018/11/10/333d9da8-e46b-11e8-b759-3d88a5ce9e19_story.html?utm_term=.862334b43f35

2 Seneca Valley football coaches disciplined after players involved in altercation, official says

Damascus High School JV football players accused of hazing teammates

DAMASCUS, Md. (ABC7) — Police are investigating allegations of hazing on a Montgomery County high school junior varsity football team.

In a letter to parents and guardians, Damascus High School principal Casey Crouse wrote that the school administration was informed of the allegations Thursday and that the Montgomery County Police Department was investigating.

"Any student who is found to have hazed another student will be disciplined in accordance with the MCPS Student Code of Conduct and may also face legal consequences," Crouse wrote...

https://wjla.com/news/local/damascus-high-school-jv-football-team-accused-hazing