Quad Cities Dispatch/Argus recently issued the following announcement.
The mother of a teen who killed herself in 2018 is suing Mercer County School District 404, contending its staff's inaction contributed the girl's death.
The suit was filed on March 27 on behalf of Bridget Carlson whose daughter, Valerie, committed suicide on March 28, 2018. It names as defendants the the district; Mercer County High School; Stacey Day, the high school principal at the time; and Tami Hainds, a guidance counselor at the time.
In it Carlson argues that the defendants' actions or inactions contributed to her daughter's suicide. She is suing for damages in excess of $50,000.
Reached for comment Friday, district Superintendent Scott Petrie said the district could not comment on current or pending litigation.
Carlson contends in the suit that her daughter was bullied by her fellow students regarding her appearance and sexual orientation during the 2017-2018 school year. The actions of those students created a hostile environment for Valerie Carlson that limited her ability to benefit from the education program offered through the school.
The actions by other students also included witnessing cut marks on Valerie Carlson and teasing her for having them, and that on the day she committed suicide in her Aledo home, another student had told her a few hours prior to her death that she should go home and kill herself, according to the suit.
Carlson states in the suit that the defendants were aware of these incidents and did not take any action, including contacting Carlson, health care professionals or law enforcement about what was happening.
The district has a policy that prohibits behavior directed toward students that can reasonably be predicted will create reasonable fear of harm to person or property, create a substantial detriment to physical or mental health, and interfere with academic performance or participation in school activities, the suit states. The policy also requires school staff to investigate reports of bullying.
In lawsuits, the people or entities named as defendants file answers to the plaintiff’s complaints. In these documents the defendants respond to the allegations against them. Those documents had not yet been filed in the Carlson suit as of Friday. The next court date for the case was not yet listed.
Original source can be found here.
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