Details into lawsuit filed against Dunmore School District

DUNMORE, LACKAWANNA COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) — A family in Dunmore has filed a lawsuit against the Dunmore School District and several parents claiming that the school failed to protect their disabled son from severe bullying.

David and Bridget Humphreys claim their son, who is on the autism spectrum, had his civil rights violated while in a school bathroom.

On March 3, 2023, the Humphreys claim their son was filmed by another student while using the bathroom, and that video was then spread throughout the school, according to the lawsuit:

“In a willful, intentional, cruel and degrading manner, defendant ls saved this recording to his cellular telephone in order to utilize the footage to embarrass and harass his disabled classmate. Shockingly, defendant LS then disseminated the video via Apple Airdrop making it available to anyone with an Apple iPhone in the area”.

The victim’s parents learned about the video on March 31, 2023, nearly a month after the incident occurred, and met with the school’s principal, Timothy Hopkins. The lawsuit states:

“Hopkins told Plaintiff’s parents that it was narrowed down to one student, Hopkins brought in that student, questioned, Hopkins was given consent to look at the student’s phone to look for the video, and no video was located. Based on this simplistic and lackadaisical investigation, Hopkins blatantly lied to Plaintiff’s parents telling them that there was really nothing else that could be done to ensure that there was no video of their son out there or any way to find out who had the video.”

On April 4 a school resource officer found the video on four other students’ phones and learned it was shared in a group chat with at least 19 members. The lawsuit claims this not only caused Humphreys’s son severe emotional distress but also violated the school’s handbook on cell phone usage.

“…The handbook provided to students prohibits students from having their cell phones while in school requiring that upon entering the school, students must place all electronic devices in their locker or in device holders in their classrooms while they are in that particular class,” claimed in the lawsuit.

Also claiming the school did not live up to its mission statement to protect its students.

“We have a special needs child who cannot protect themselves, rely on the school to protect them, where the Dunmore School District has absolutely failed this child and his family miserably,” Jason Mattioli, trial attorney, at the Mattioli Law Firm.

The Humphreys family is asking for damages to address the emotional and psychological harm their son has endured. They believe the school’s negligence and failure to enforce its own policies have led to this situation.

In a statement to 28/22 News, the Humphreys say:

Our sweet, precious boy was violated at school, a place that we drop him off at every day, and expect that he will be kept safe.  Not only was he not kept safe, but because of his naivety and innocence, he was singled out, preyed upon, stalked, and targeted. Our sweet, innocent, beautiful boy was taken advantage of in a violent attempt to humiliate, shame, and torment him.

As our son’s parents & advocates, it is our duty to protect and defend him against any harm or wrongdoing that may arise as a result of his naivety, whether that be due to his age, or because of his disability. In sending our son to Dunmore, a public school district that values a free & appropriate public education, as well as the inclusion of individuals with disabilities, we assumed that they too would have the same intentions and his best interest in mind.

Not only was this not the case, but when the violation was brought to our attention, the Dunmore School District lied to our faces, saying that no such violation occurred and no video of it exists. Had we not taken our role as our son’s advocates seriously, and insisted that an official investigation be completed, who knows how far and wide this video would have gotten?

The Dunmore School District, as well as the Dunmore Police Department, did their very best to hinder this investigation, but eventually, the truth was brought to light. To attempt to express the effects that this situation has had on our family, would be a disservice. One can only understand after having lived through what we have lived through these past 16 months. The feelings of betrayal by the school district that we have entrusted the two most precious things in our lives, our two children, too.

The lack of support we have felt, the feelings of concern for our son’s safety, as he re-entered a school building where he was targeted, bullied, & violated repeatedly. The sleepless nights we have experienced, the emotional distress, fear, and trauma we have endured, knowing that this was allowed to happen to our sweet, kind, loving boy. It’s simply not possible to calculate or measure the toll that any of these atrocities have taken on us, and how long they will continue to do so.

The Humphreys

28/22 News did reach out to the Dunmore School Administration for comment, and we were told both the superintendent and principal were not available at this time.

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