School District Tells 'Outright Lie' About Hazing Legal History, Lawyer Says
It Is Unclear Who Specifically Provided The Statement
Responding to a lawsuit over a high school hazing scandal, the Clay County School District yesterday said it expects to win as it has in “previous cases.” The only problem is that there is apparently no record of those cases, and the victim's lawyer dismissed the statement as an “outright lie.”
At last night’s School Board meeting, the district offered its first public commentary on the pending litigation involving the wrestling program at Clay High School. Then the district was quoted by Action News Jax, saying this:
“Clay County District Schools is aware that this individual has once again filed a lawsuit against the District, despite previous cases being dismissed. While we respect the legal process, we remain confident that the facts will prevail, as they have before. Our focus remains on supporting our students, educators, and community, and we are committed to continuing our work without distraction.”
John Phillips is the Jacksonville attorney representing the victim and his family. As a lawyer, he is an officer of the court and subscribes to LexisNexis, the world's largest electronic database for legal and public-records. His response: “No other lawsuits were filed. This is an outright lie.”
This apparent falshehood adds to the evolving narrative surrounding the allegations. Initially, the school district denied any knowledge of the alleged incident. When more details emerged, their stance became “we investigated, but found nothing;” then, “we investigated and handled it properly.” Now, “we litigated this already and won.”
Clay News & Views contacted the school district for clarification but had not received a response by the time this article was published.
Could you tell the truth? It is much easier. Guess who are not good role models for our children and youth?
In their attempt to smear this family, as they’ve been through enough, they have let the entire community know how corrupt they really are. That was a bold stance to take considering they know there are other victims. This wasn’t an isolated incident, and they’re covering it up.