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According to WBTV, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS) is being accused of failing to do enough after a concerned mother called WBTV for help after her five-year-old daughter reported being sexually assaulted on the school bus heading to Croft Community School located at 4911 Hucks Rd, Charlotte, NC 28269.
The incident happened on February 6, 2023. Records show that the girl’s mother reported it to school officials and police, but records also show that CMS failed to take any immediate action in response and neglected to provide the supportive measures it had promised.
The girl’s mother reported that one of the boys exposed himself in addition to touching her daughter. She provided hospital records showing her daughter was examined for a possible sexual assault, and a police report shows officers responded to the hospital to take a report. The mother said that instead of providing an older female student to sit with the girl as promised, when her daughter got back on the bus, she was forced to sit next to one of the boys, who she said attacked her.
“The school district never called me, and I think that’s what several days had passed when I reached out to you because I was like, you know, I didn’t know what else to do,” she said. “The principal, she wasn’t offering any help at all.”
This incident comes just weeks after newly installed CMS interim superintendent Dr. Crystal Hill touted improvements in how the district handles reported sexual violence. When asked about the improvements, the mother responded, “I say that’s a made-up lie.” The incident is under investigation by police and the school district. It is unclear whether any disciplinary action will be taken against the school or the accused boys.
Attorney contributor Kristen Beightol represents school sex abuse victims in North Carolina. As an experience school sex crimes attorney, she helps victims and their families get the justice and financial compensation they deserve.
School districts must take steps to provide ample protection for students from sexual abuse, including on buses. This may include dash cams and utilizing proper seating arrangements. If a school district does not take adequate measures to protect its students from sexual abuse, and a student is subsequently assaulted on a school bus, the victim may have a legal right to file a civil lawsuit against the school district for its negligence in such a case.
Victims of sexual abuse while on school buses may have the right to file a civil lawsuit against negligent school districts. In order to prevail in such a lawsuit, they must prove that the school district was negligent in its duty to protect the safety of students. If a school district was aware of misconduct with students, yet failed to act accordingly, they could be deemed negligent.
Victims of sexual abuse on school buses should speak to an experienced sex abuse attorney to discuss their legal rights and options. By filing a civil suit against a negligent school district, they could recover compensation.
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