Clovis teacher sexually groped teen with other students in classroom, lawsuit says

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A student at Clovis High East School is suing her former teacher and the school district after she said the teacher sexually groped and fondled her in the fall of 2018 — at least once with other students present.

The accused teacher, Kenneth Kong Lee, was arrested in March 2019 following a Clovis Police Department investigation.

According to the lawsuit, Lee was working as a Hmong language teacher in the fall of 2018 when, in the classroom, he touched the teenager’s breast and buttocks while appearing to comfort the girl over some of her personal troubles.

The alleged victim says Lee touched her buttocks on multiple occasions, including at least once when “other students were present in the classroom,” according to the lawsuit. The suit does not say whether any other students witnessed the incident.

The attorney representing the alleged victim did not respond to requests for comment.

The lawsuit was filed March 25 and seeks unspecified damages for sexual abuse of a minor, sexual battery, assault, and emotional distress. The suit also names the Clovis Unified School District as a defendant and accuses the district of negligent hiring and supervision practices, saying the district “did nothing to investigate, supervise, or monitor” Lee.

The teenager reported the alleged abuse to a high school administrator on Dec. 12, 2018, the lawsuit says.

“Clovis detectives took over the investigation and determined that inappropriate touching had occurred on more than one occasion inside Mr. Lee’s classroom,” police said in a 2019 news release announcing Lee’s arrest.

Lee, 53, has pleaded not guilty to a felony count of lewd acts upon a child and a misdemeanor child molestation charge. If convicted, Lee could be forced to register as a sex offender. He remains free on bail and is set to appear again on June 30 in Fresno County Superior Court, according to court records.

According to the criminal complaint, Fresno prosecutors believe Lee inappropriate touched the alleged victim on multiple occasions between March 1 and Dec. 11, 2018.

Lee is currently on compulsory unpaid leave while the case is ongoing, according to Clovis Unified spokesperson Kelly Avants. He was first placed on leave on Dec. 13, 2018.

“The District has been served with the suit and legal counsel is examining its details,” Avants said in a statement.

“Any allegation involving misconduct by an employee is acted upon immediately, and we involve all appropriate law enforcement and public safety experts quickly to ensure thorough and timely action is taken.”

Avants said the district took “immediate action at the time that the allegation was raised to involve law enforcement in conducting an investigation.”

At the time of Lee’s arrest in 2018, Avants said, “we have maintained close communication with the student and family involved in the initial report to ensure they are kept well-informed and supported.”

Lee’s defense attorney did not respond to requests for comment.

Multiple lawsuits involving sexual misconduct and Clovis schools

The lawsuit is at least the second filed so far this year accusing a former Clovis teacher of sexual misconduct with a student.

Earlier this month, a Fresno man filed a lawsuit against CUSD and a former teacher, accusing the teacher of sexually abusing him when he was her student in the 1990s.

Late last year, a Clovis woman sued CUSD on behalf of a student with special needs who said she was sexually assaulted by another student twice, once in 2018 and again in 2020. The lawsuit accuses the district of negligence and says school staff failed to supervise the student properly.

This story was originally published April 29, 2021 at 8:17 AM.