The parents of a teenage girl who was the second known victim to be sexually assaulted by a Loudoun County high school student are speaking out for the first time, and say school officials ignored "multiple red flags" about her assailant.
A student sexually assaulted a female student at Stone Bridge High School in May 2021, but was allowed to transfer to Broad Run High School, where he abducted and sexually assaulted the second student in October of 2021. The teen was later convicted in juvenile court.
A special grand jury found Loudoun County Public Schools administrators looked out for their own interests rather than the interests of the school district throughout their handling of the two sexual assaults, according to its report released on Dec. 5.
"With the release of the Grand Jury report, the public now knows what we have suspected since the start of this tragic event – that what happened to her on October 6, 2021 could have and should have been prevented," the family of the Broad Run High School victim said in part. “Multiple red flags during the time period of May 12, 2021 to October 6, 2021 were raised and ignored, including the 12-page disciplinary record for the assailant that was also mentioned in the report."
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The family's attorney, Patrick M. Regan, released the statement on their behalf on Monday, amid the news that a grand jury indicted former Superintendent Scott Ziegler and the school district's spokesman.
"One thing we feel is important to note is that over the last 14 months since our daughter was assaulted, not one member of the school board, LCPS administration, or even our local high school leadership has reached out to check on how she is doing, lend any type of support or even apologize for what we are going through as a family. That alone speaks volumes to what we have endured throughout this ordeal," the victim's family's statement said.
The parents go on to state that their daughter showed "more courage and leadership when she reported what happened to her to the Sheriff's Resource Officer than any of them ever did. The ineptitude of all involved is staggering."
School board members voted to fire Ziegler days after the grand jury's report. He was indicted with misdemeanor counts of false publication, prohibited conduct and penalizing an employee for a court appearance, according to the Virginia attorney general's office.
The grand jury accused Ziegler of lying about the Broad Run High School assault at a school board meeting in June 2021, after the first assault occurred.
The school system placed Public Information Officer Wayde Byard on leave. Byard was indicted on one felony count of perjury.
"The direction taken recently to change the culture of LCPS is only the start. More needs to happen before healing can begin and the system can be trusted again," the parents of the second victim said in their statement Monday. Parents need to feel that they can send their kids to a safe learning environment. This County has great residents and we need our elected and public servants to represent and show that greatness as well.”
The assaults have garnered significant public attention, in part, because the student who was convicted in both attacks is a biological male who wore a skirt in one of the attacks, playing into a national debate over how schools should treat transgender students and whether they should be allowed to use restrooms different to their biological sex.
As the school board debated policies governing transgender students and whether they can use the restroom of their preference, a school board member asked Ziegler if the schools had a problem with sexual assaults occurring in bathrooms.
Ziegler responded that “to my knowledge we don't have any record of assaults in our restrooms.” But emails show that Ziegler had been informed of the Stone Bridge assault and in fact had sent an email to board members informing them of the incident.
Teachers at both schools warned administrators of the student's disturbing conduct weeks before each assault occurred, according to the report. Even the student's grandmother spoke up and warned the student's probation officer, referring to her grandchild as a “sociopath," according to the report.
Two weeks before the first assault, a teaching assistant wrote an email to another teacher and administrator noting that the boy sat on girls' laps during study hall “and seems to have a problem with listening and keeping his hands to himself.”
The grand jury said it believes the second sexual assault at Broad Run "could have, and should have, been prevented."
"A remarkable lack of curiosity and adherence to operating in silos by LCPS administrators is ultimately to blame for the October 6 incident," the report said.
There was not, however, a coordinated cover-up among officials and school board members were deliberately deprived of information regarding the incidents until after the Oct. 6 sexual assault, the grand jury concluded.
"(W)e are pleased that the Special Grand Jury’s extensive investigation found no evidence of criminal conduct on the part of anyone within LCPS, and not a single indictment was filed as a result of this lengthy process," school board Chair Jeff Morse and Vice Chair Ian Serotkin said in a statement.
Grand Jury's Recommendations for Loudoun County Public Schools
In its report, the grand jury made numerous recommendations for the school system and the school board going forward:
- Increase transparency and foster better communication
- Re-examine its transfer process and establish a protocol that requires more vigorous communication between principals, school administration, faculty, special resource officers and, when relevant, the commonwealth's attorney, juvenile court authorities and the sheriff's office
- More involvement from the LCPS director of safety and security in situations that threaten the safety and security of students, faculty and staff
- Tightened policies regarding the types of apps students are allowed to download on their school-issued devices
- Review Gaggle, the system schools use to monitor student conversation for safety
- Limit the degree to which school board members invoke attorney-client privilege
- Improve communication, cooperation and coordination across agencies in cases of criminal conduct involving students, faculty and staff
- Strengthen avenues of support and advocacy for faculty and staff confronted with challenging scenarios that could pose a danger or impede learning
"This broad use of the special grand jury investigative process did, however, yield a Report that contains several criticisms of LCPS employees and processes within the Division that are quite serious. We are placing this on our next Board agenda for immediate discussion to reflect on these recommendations and take action as determined by the full Board," read part of the school board's response to the report.
"…unlike corporate executives of a company, school board members act on behalf of the public they are elected to serve," the jury said in its report. "The attorney-client privilege should be invoked when required to protect legitimate issues of confidentiality that impact the operations of LCPS and the LCSB. It should not be used as a shield that impedes transparency, accountability and openness, especially when it comes to the operations of a public body."
During its investigation, the grand jury said it was "struck by the lack of communication among LCPS, LCSO, the court services unit and the commonwealth's attorney's office." A "memorandum of understanding" between the school system and sheriff's office outlines the procedures for establishing a threat assessment team, but no threat assessment of the student involved in the assaults was "ever contemplated, let alone undertaken, by either SBHS or BRHS," the jury said in the report.
Miyares empaneled the grand jury after Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, on his first day in office, issued an executive order requesting an investigation by the attorney general’s office.
"It's a damning indictment of a - of people not being proactive, not being forthright and, according to the jury, … a superintended that misled the general public," Miyares told News4 Monday.
Miyares would not say whether or not criminal indictments could result from the investigation, although the grand jury did not recommend any criminal charges in its report.
"The grand jury remains empaneled. I will let the general public speculate, but our work is ongoing," he told News4.
In light of the grand jury investigation LCPS must commit to "transparency, accountability, and communication," Miyares said.
Youngkin and Miyares, both Republicans, had criticized the school board during their successful 2021 campaigns. They said the board was not transparent in how it handled the case as it revised its guidelines over policies governing transgender students.
Youngkin said Monday that he was satisfied with the grand jury's report.
“Today’s report is an important step towards accountability and I applaud the AG for his initiative,” he said in a tweet.
Lawyers for the Loudoun County School Board previously argued that Miyares was in violation of Virginia’s constitution when he created the grand jury to probe another government body. But Virginia Deputy Attorney General Steven Popps told the judge, "The school board is not above the law.”
The Supreme Court of Virginia upheld a ruling in July by a circuit court judge who denied the school board's request for an injunction to stop the grand jury from proceeding.
Both the victims' parents said previously they wanted the special grand jury to complete its work.
