Taylor & Ring Obtains $5M Settlement Against Two School Districts in Teacher-Student Sex Abuse Case

A school district’s top priorities are to protect their students, while providing the best educational environment possible. The Big Oak Flat-Groveland Unified School District and Paso Robles Joint Unified School Districts both lost sight of their role in protecting students’ safety when Jeremy Monn, a high school teacher, was transferred from one district to another despite the first district’s knowledge of his improper interactions with female students.

David M. Ring, of Taylor & Ring, has obtained a $5 million settlement against Big Oak Flat-Groveland Unified School District and Paso Robles Joint Unified School District on behalf of a then 16-year-old student who was sexually abused by Jeremy Monn. In an article in The Tribune, David Ring said, “This is a classic example of a school district passing off a bad teacher to another school district.”

How did this happen?

Monn began teaching in the Big Oak district in 2011. While he was teaching there, school administrators received several serious complaints about the inappropriate ways in which Monn was interacting with female students. Despite Monn’s leaving Big Oak when the school year ended in 2013 under less than favorable circumstances, he was given “glowing reviews” from the district superintendent and other educational leaders.

Based on the recommendations from Big Oak, and without doing their due diligence in inquiring about Monn’s history, Paso Robles School District hired him. The lawsuit complains that Paso Robles was negligent in monitoring how Monn was interacting with students. Monn taught at Paso Robles high school in the 2013-14 academic year, which is when he sexually abused a 16-year-old girl on several occasions. That young woman is the plaintiff in the lawsuit against the two school districts.

Another girl, who was a 15-year-old student of Monn’s when he taught at Don Pedro High School in 2013, came forward and Monn was arrested and charged with abusing both young women in 2014. He pled guilty for abusing both girls and received a six-year prison sentence.

The civil lawsuit is focused on the fact that Big Oak seems to have ignored the complaints about Monn. They not only failed to report his criminal behavior to the police, but they also gave Monn false recommendations so that they could pass him off to another school district with no regard for the safety of the students in that district. One of those students was the plaintiff who was abused by Monn after the Paso Robles district hired him.

This is one of the largest “per plaintiff” settlements for a victim of sexual abuse against a school district. Mr. Ring also handled the infamous cases against the Moraga School District in which two victims of abuse received $7 million each in 2014.

The Big Oak Flat-Groveland Unified School District contributed $4 million to the settlement and Paso Robles Joint Unified School District contributed $1 million. District insurance policies have funded the settlement.

Sexual abuse of a child by a teacher, a staff member or any person is unacceptable. If your child has been hurt by an education professional, the Los Angeles child sexual abuse attorneys of Taylor & Ring are here to support you in fighting back and obtaining justice on behalf of your child. Please call us at 310.776.6390, or fill out our contact form, and schedule a free consultation with us today.