Autistic Clovis Unified student was sexually assaulted then suspended, lawsuit alleges

A parent in Clovis Unified School District is suing the school district on behalf of a special-needs female student, alleging she was sexually assaulted due to negligence by officials entrusted with her care.

The suit, filed in Fresno Superior Court, describes the then-Clovis East High School girl as having an “intellectual disability, a speech and language disorder, and Autism.” She is now 18.

Attorney Omar G. Qureshi maintains she can “almost or never” avoid people who might “take advantage of her ... for ... sex.”

Qureshi said the girl continues to study under COVID-19 restrictions, but that she often wakes up at night traumatized by the assaults, and becomes distraught when she hears the name of the student who allegedly committed them. He said the lawsuit was filed after Clovis Unified officials refused to discuss a settlement.

Clovis Unified response to allegations

Kelly Avants, a spokeswoman for Clovis Unified, said officials were limited in what they could say about the lawsuit.

“When a case is going through the legal process we aren’t able to talk much – which pretty much leaves the plaintiff’s legal counsel to define the situation,” she said.

“As a school district, we take seriously any allegations that there is inadequate supervision of our students. However, because this is active litigation, I am not able to comment about the specifics of this suit or its allegations.”

Along with the district, multiple officials who work for Clovis Unified are named in the lawsuit.

Damages sought against Clovis school district

The suit alleges that although the student needs to be under “close adult supervision” at all times, she was left unsupervised on two occasions, in 2018 and in 2020, before her 18th birthday. While left on her own, she was allegedly sexually assaulted by the same male student.

After the first assault, the suit reported that a district employee “chastened her for having sex on campus” and suspended her from class for five days without documenting the incident. In 2020, the suit said the same student “cornered her” and again assaulted her.

Qureshi added that after the alleged assault, district officials were required, but did not:

▪ Console the victim.

▪ Inform parents, social workers, and school psychologists that a potential sexual battery had occurred.

▪ Inform the district leader specially trained to conduct possible rape investigations.

The lawsuit seeks compensatory damages to be determined at trial, attorney fees, treble damages, and punitive damages for individual defendants.