JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A new school year is bringing a new legal challenge for Duval County Public Schools. The district is facing a federal lawsuit from the family of a teenage girl who says she was sexually assaulted on her school bus — and that school officials failed her after she reported it.
The lawsuit names the Duval County School Board, the superintendent, several district employees, the bus company and the bus driver as defendants. It also points to past controversies over how the district has handled sexual-misconduct allegations.
Student describes 3 incidents, including prolonged assault
In a 42-page federal lawsuit, the victim — identified only as “Jane Doe” — says she was a ninth grader at Stanton College Preparatory School when another student began sexually harassing her on the school bus.
The lawsuit describes three incidents, culminating in what attorneys say was a prolonged sexual assault Sept. 30, 2024, alleging the bus driver failed to intervene.
According to the attorney, during the assault, the accused student asked the bus driver for his thermos. The driver handed it to him and, according to the lawsuit, looked directly at him. The alleged assault then resumed.
Surveillance video not retrieved until mid-November, according to lawsuit
Doe reported what happened to school administrators Oct. 17. Her family later asked the district in writing to preserve surveillance video from the bus. The lawsuit says that video was not retrieved until mid-November.
Lawyers allege that after Doe reported the assault, school officials required her to sit at the front of the bus near the driver. The male student accused of assaulting her was later arrested and pleaded guilty to felony battery.
Former prosecutor weighs in on strength of case
Former federal prosecutor Curtis Fallgatter, who is not associated with this case, says he expects defense attorneys to argue the bus driver’s primary responsibility was watching the road — not monitoring every interaction between students.
“The fact that is fairly, fairly weak. The perpetrator has been brought to justice. The claim on a bus driver is based on a man and the young man, a thermos. I don’t see how you connect the dots on that. Obviously, the school administrators have no clue about what’s going on the bus. And so it appears the school board has acted timely and correctly in addressing the issues,” Fallgatter said.
Lawsuit points to broader pattern of alleged DCPS misconduct
The victim’s attorney also argues this case fits into what they describe as a broader history of reporting and oversight problems within DCPS, saying previous cases involving sexual assault at Douglas Anderson School of the Arts were underreported, misclassified and mishandled.
Fallgatter says he is not convinced those past cases will carry much weight in court.
“The fact there may have been some lapses in the past, they don’t relate directly to this young lady. And of course again, like I said, it’s a huge school district. But the second thing is that whatever failure to handle the prior cases can be asserted — doesn’t appear they can be asserted here because, again, as we see from the complaint, the young man that committed this alleged act ended up getting prosecuted,” Fallgatter said.
The lawsuit is asking for damages and is calling for changes in reporting practices within the Duval County School District. The district has not responded to the lawsuit.