Rape Threat, Racial Harassment Went Unchecked At LAUSD Middle School, Suit Claims

LOS ANGELES, CA — A lawsuit filed on behalf of Los Feliz middle school student against Los Angeles Unified officials claims school administrators failed to protect her from another student who racially harassed the girl and threaten to rape her.

The suit was filed on behalf of the girl, now 14, in connection to events that transpired between 2020 and 2024 at Thomas Starr King Middle School when she was between the ages of 9 or 10 and 13, according to court documents obtained by Patch. She is identified in the suit only as Q.F.

The lawsuit claims the district and its faculty "engaged in negligent, reckless conduct, legally causing plaintiff damages as alleged herein, including but not limited to negligently supervising students on the school premises, allowing a racially hostile environment and failure to protect plaintiff from threats of sexual violence."

On an unnamed date, the girl was "racially harassed by another student." The girl reported the harassment to administrators, who failed to take action, the suit claims.

In May 2024, "the same student racially harassed plaintiff and threatened to rape her." The girl reported it, but the student was not reprimanded "and continues to post a threat to her safety and wellbeing," the suit claims.

"The harassment included making lewd and sexually charged remarks, and other racially inappropriate, assaulting, and harassing behavior towards plaintiff," the lawsuit claims.

The lawsuit claims the school has not taken action to "ensure that students are properly supervised" and has not separated the girl from the other student.

As a result, the girl faces "discomfort at school, heightened sensitivity, being bullied and taunted at school, PTSD symptoms, humiliation, mental anguish, anxiety, and difficulty trusting others," according to the suit.

The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages, including those connected to medical and psychological case and "loss of earnings and future earning capacity."

An LAUSD representative said the district does not comment on pending or ongoing litigation.