MIAMI – The parents of a 14-year-old boy filed a lawsuit against Palmer Trinity School on Tuesday, claiming school administrators failed to discipline a group of students who bullied their son and then sexually assaulted him.
The family is seeking damages less than $5 million.
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According to the lawsuit, a group of boys began bullying the victim, identified as "John Doe" in or around September 2013, by taunting him using gay slurs.
The complaint claims school administrators were present during some of the bullying and failed to take action against the students.
The bullying eventually escalated into sexual assault, according to the complaint, which states that a student partially inserted a plastic bottle into the victim's rectum while he was sleeping on a bus while on the way to a track event. Another student allegedly took video of the attack.
According to the complaint, several teachers and the bus driver allowed the video to be shown to other students, who "laughed at and ridiculed John."
The complaint states that on Oct. 11, 2013, the victim was waiting to begin track practice when the same group of three boys initiated a fight, and punched the victim in the genital area.
The victim suffered bleeding from his testicles and suffered permanent hip damage.
"The school's acts and omissions caused severe emotional distress to John. The
school knew or had reason to know that its outrageous and reckless acts and omissions would cause emotional trauma and damage to John," the complaint states.
The family is seeking "compensatory damages for loss of consortium, and such other and further relief as this court deems just and proper."
Palmer Trinity School released a comment to Local 10 News saying, "First and foremost, the safety and well-being of our students is paramount. Palmer Trinity School has a strict anti-bullying policy and has zero tolerance for any unacceptable behavior by faculty, staff members or students.
We cannot comment specifically on the pending lawsuit at this time. However, Palmer Trinity's Honor Code requires students, staff and faculty to commit to acting responsibly, being considerate, and being respectful of the rights of all individuals."
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