Sisters sue Issaquah School District alleging administrators did not protect them from harassment and bullying



ISSAQUAH, Wash. -- The Issaquah School District is now facing a civil lawsuit. The plaintiffs in the case are two sisters who went to Skyline High School.

The lawsuit is accusing the school district of not acting appropriately after one of the sisters revealed she was sexually assaulted.

“The moment I was raped I felt something leave my body I can't explain it. I am a shell of who I used to be,” the plaintiff said.

The Skyline High School graduate asked not to be identified.

She says in 2014, two football players sexually assaulted her at a home.

“I would do anything to not be in this position,” the plaintiff said.

She says the two-star football players, minors at the time, accepted a deal pleading guilty to assault with sexual motivation.

Yet she says the Issaquah School District refused to investigate the boys. The players were transferred to other schools. She says what followed was years of harassment and bullying by other students at Skyline High School.

The plaintiff says she reported the bullying to school administrators but she says they didn’t do enough to protect her.

“They didn't do anything they talked about what routes how differently I should go to class to avoid these people,” the plaintiff said.

The survivor’s younger sister is also a plaintiff in the civil lawsuit against the school district because she says students started to bully her in person and on social media.

She says those students were never disciplined or suspended.

Court documents say after a football coach joined in on Twitter their home was targeted.

“Our house got egged and paintballed,” the sister said.

The plaintiffs say their house was also firebombed about a month after the allegations of rape were made against the football players.

“Someone taped a 100 sparklers together and threw it at our living room window,” the plaintiff said.

The younger sister says she had to transfer schools and the family moved out of their home.

Their attorney says it's important their story gets out to the public.

“We want parents to know things are going on and schools may not be responding especially the Issaquah school district,” Attorney Yvonne Kinoshita Ward said.

Ward says the school put football over the safety of their students.

“Skyline has won 6 state titles out of the last 9 seasons they are a powerhouse, football is God, they were on the way to the playoff again,” Ward said.

The sisters are seeking damages for a number of things including emotional distress and humiliation. But they say they are speaking out so that it doesn’t happen to other students.

The Issaquah School District released this statement.

“The Issaquah School District has just been made aware of a lawsuit that was recently filed against it which contains very serious and sensitive allegations.

"The district is now in the process of reviewing the lawsuit with legal counsel, but generally denies any allegations of legal wrongdoing.

"The district recognizes that the allegations set forth in the lawsuit touch upon sensitive subjects for all of the individuals involved, as well as the community, but we are unable to offer any further remarks on the lawsuit or the specific allegations contained in the lawsuit at this particular time.

"We do want our families, and the public, to know that the safety of our students remains of paramount importance.

"The Issaquah School District has established processes in place for staff to receive, investigate, and respond to reports of all forms of misconduct and defers investigations to local law enforcement when the situation is outside of our jurisdiction."