Doe No. 55 v. Madison Metropolitan School Dist.

Federal 7th Circuit Court
Civil Court
School Law
Citation
Case Number: 
No. 17-1521
Decision Date: 
July 26, 2018
Federal District: 
W.D. Wisc.
Holding: 
Affirmed

Dist. Ct. did not err in granting defendant-school district’s motion for summary judgment in plaintiff-middle school student’s Title IX action alleging that she was sexually assaulted by security guard employed by defendant while plaintiff was in 8th grade. Plaintiff failed to present sufficient evidence to establish that school principal had actual knowledge of security guard’s sexual misconduct of plaintiff, since: (1) plaintiff could only show, at best, that principal held concern when plaintiff was in 7th grade that there might be risk of security guard having inappropriate relationship with plaintiff, where plaintiff was perceived to have crush on security guard and had attempted to kiss him; (2) principal took measures to address said concern at that time; and (3) school principal was unaware of any physical contact or any other indication of relationship between plaintiff and security guard in plaintiff’s 8th grade when alleged sexual assault occurred. As such, reasonable jury could not find that prior to alleged sexual assault, principal had actual knowledge of risk that was so great that harm to plaintiff from security guard was almost certain to materialize if nothing were done about it.