- A federal Appeals Court panel has affirmed trial court rulings against a former Myers Park High School student who sued Charlotte and Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools over an alleged sexual assault in 2015.
- A jury ruled against the former student in 2023. She had claimed that the city, school system, an assistant principal, and school resource officer all violated her rights in connection with the off-campus incident.
- The unsigned appellate decision is also unpublished. That means it cannot be used as a precedent in future cases at the 4th US Circuit Court of Appeals.
The 4th US Circuit Court of Appeals has rejected various arguments from a former student who sued Charlotte and Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools in connection with an alleged sexual assault near Myers Park High School in 2015. The suit also named a school resource officer and assistant principal.
In an unsigned, unpublished opinion Monday, a three-judge appellate panel affirmed US District Judge Robert Conrad’s decisions in the case.
The student identified as Jane Doe appealed to the 4th Circuit in February 2023, almost a month after a jury ruled against her. The student had claimed the city and Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools mishandled her report of a sexual assault.
The appeal applied to trial court decisions stretching back to August 2022. Conrad ruled in favor of two individual defendants before the case headed to a trial. Conrad dismissed the city of Charlotte from the suit before sending the case to the jury.
After a weeklong trial, the jury ruled on January 2023 that CMS did not commit a federal Title IX violation in handling the sexual assault complaint. That means the school system would not have to pay damages to Doe. She had been seeking more than $1 million.
Court filings in the lawsuit allege that another student “grabbed and squeezed” Doe’s arm and pulled her toward the woods next to campus, despite her verbal protest. Doe then sent a series of texts, according to the complaint: “Help me,” “Guys, I’m being serious. I’m really scared.” “Mom, I’m being kidnapped. Call somebody.” After the texts, the fellow student assaulted Doe, according to the lawsuit.
“Ms. Doe suffered and continues to suffer injuries, including, without limitations, emotional distress, psychological trauma, and mortification,” according to the lawsuit. “The actions and inactions of defendants to discount Ms. Doe’s abduction and subsequent rape by a fellow student were driven by endemic and discriminatory sex-based stereotypes and gender biases held by officials at MPHS.”
The jury determined CMS was not “deliberately indifferent.” That’s one of four criteria courts use to determine whether a Title IX infraction occurred.
“We are grateful the jury reached their decision after hearing all of the evidence,” CMS responded in a statement.
Despite the trial court loss, Doe’s attorneys said she felt “vindicated,” according to a WSOC-TV report on the day of the verdict.
“[The jury] found that she was sexually harassed and that it was severe,” attorney Linda Bailey said. “Even at the end of the day, even with CMS not being held accountable, we still know that the jury believed her and that’s what she wanted from the start.”