L.A. Unified hopes $1.4-million award brings healing in girl’s assault

Los Angeles school officials say they hope a fourth-grade special needs student and her family can complete the healing process now that a jury has awarded her $1.4 million after she was sexually assaulted five times by a male classmate.

Santa Monica jurors made the decision Tuesday after an eight-day trial about how much the Los Angeles Unified School District should pay for the injuries the girl suffered because of inadequate supervision at an after-school program at Superior Street Elementary in Chatsworth.

The jury apportioned the verdict between the male classmate and the district. The district must pay up to $730,000 of the decision.

“This was a difficult case, and our thoughts are with the victim. Although we had a responsibility to be prudent with taxpayer dollars and defend the school district’s position in court, we hope that with the trial complete that the healing process can continue for the child and family involved,” said Greg McNair, the district’s associate counsel.

The boy sexually assaulted the girl behind a shed and tree, out of sight of a program supervisor, in spring 2010, court documents said.

“Because the victim was special needs, she was not able to express herself. LAUSD minimized her harm throughout the trial,” said attorney David Ring, who with Louanne Masry represented the child’s family. “The jury found that offensive.”

Ring said the district “admitted fault, but they didn’t want to admit the harm that resulted.”

A spokesman for the school district did not return a phone call seeking comment.

With one staffer supervising as many as 100 students in the after-school program, the boy was able to take the 9-year-old girl to locations on campus where he forced her to submit to sexual acts and perform sexual acts, according to court records.

During the fifth incident in spring 2010, a teacher heard the two students behind a shed and witnessed an assault, court records show. The 10-year-old boy was immediately taken to the principal and the police were called; he then admitted to the multiple sexual assaults.

The girl was “punched, pushed and kicked” by the boy before he sexually assaulted her each time, the documents said. Out of fear, the girl told no one about the attacks, according to the lawsuit.

On the eve of trial, LAUSD lawyers admitted the school’s supervision was substandard after the low staff-to-student ratio was revealed, and acknowledged the boy’s troubled history in the after-school program.

The boy had previously been suspended from the program and had a long history of problems, including punching a child in the genitals after school, making sexually inappropriate remarks and showing his penis to other students, court records show.

Ring said the district had a heightened duty to protect the girl with “mild mental retardation.” The girl, who is now 12, was left with the boy, who school officials knew had a history of violence, court records show.

During the trial, the girl’s attorneys presented evidence that she suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder and anxiety as a result of the repeated assaults. Despite intense therapy, she continues to exhibit nightmares, aggressive behavior, fear of males, flashbacks and crying spells, according to court documents.

Before the trial, the school district’s attorneys offered the girl’s family a settlement of $225,000, but the family declined, the documents said.

Ring said the jurors during the trial did not hear about the perpetrator’s history or the district’s action because they focused solely on what compensation the girl should receive for her injuries and damages.

Because the boy is a juvenile, it was unclear whether he was ever arrested or charged.

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richard.winton@latimes.com