DETROIT – Eleven families have filed a lawsuit against Huron Valley Schools, school officials and a staffing firm, arguing officials should have done more to prevent children from being sexually assaulted by former substitute teacher Timothy Daugherty.
Ven Johnson, a lawyer representing the 11 families, filed the 68-page lawsuit on Monday, Sept. 22 in U.S. District Court, Eastern Michigan Division.
“The district and its employees are mandated to protect innocent children under their supervision – and they failed miserably,” Johnson said. “These parents begged school administration for help, only to be mocked, ridiculed and laughed out of board meetings. Rather than removing a known predator, the district continued to give him access to young children, and ignored the fact that these assaults were happening under their watch.”
The 68-page lawsuit seeks at least $75,000 in damages and names as defendants Daugherty, as well as Huron Valley Schools, Edustaff, a staffing agency who employed Daugherty, and multiple employees of the district, including Superintendent Paul Salah, Spring Mills Elementary Principal Sarah Bentley and Counselor Kelly Mattingly.
Salah and Communications Director Barb Roethler sent a statement on behalf of the district:”The health and safety of our students is our top priority, and we take that responsibility very seriously. Huron Valley Schools wants to assure the parents and families in our district that we remain fully committed to the well-being of every student in our care. Due to ongoing litigation, we are unable to comment further on this matter at this time.”
Edustaff did not immediately return a call for comment.
Among the allegations in the lawsuit are gross negligence by the Huron Valley School District and Edustaff; failure to report suspected child abuse by mandated reporters and others; and permanent and long-term psychological injuries and harm to the children and their families.
Daugherty, 61, of White Lake, was found guilty in May of six counts of second-degree criminal sexual conduct, involving three children between the ages of 9 and 11 at Spring Mills Elementary between 2023 and 2024. In July, he was sentenced to a minimum of 10 years in prison.
Johnson said there were at least 10 victims at Spring Mills, and an 11th victim, who is now an adult, joined him at a press conference on Monday as part of the lawsuit.
The woman said she was victimized by Daugherty during a sleepover with his daughter in 2016 when she was 11-years-old.
The charges were later dropped, but Johnson said during the press conference that Edustaff, the temporary staffing agency that Huron Valley contracts with for substitute teachers, was aware of the investigation into Daugherty.
“How they allowed him to go into 12 different elementaries throughout the area is an absolute travesty of justice,” Johnson said.
This article originally appeared on Hometownlife.com: 11 families sue Huron Valley Schools after substitute teacher convicted
Reporting by Susan Bromley, Hometownlife.com / Hometownlife.com
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
