FARMINGTON, Utah — Six current and former students filed a lawsuit Monday against the Davis School District, claiming district officials betrayed them after they reported alleged misconduct by a school coach.
The plaintiffs told FOX 13 News that in 2023, they directly reported the coach to their school for what they claim was sexual grooming, abuse, and other misconduct.
Because the plaintiffs are only suing the district and not the coach, FOX 13 News is not identifying the coach, who is facing no criminal charges.
Filing the lawsuit only against the district was not their first choice, according to their attorney.
“Civil litigation is not a fix-all kind of proposition," said attorney Michael Young. "Frankly, I think a lot of times civil litigation, given how difficult it is, really should be treated, and I can tell you in this case, treated as a last resort."
Before the lawsuit, plaintiffs and their families say they followed district protocols and filed official complaints with the district regarding the situation. The filing claims parents lodged complaints with school officials alleging the coach had concerning and inappropriate interactions with their underage children.
Some of the alleged interactions in the complaint include the coach making sexual and demeaning comments and pressuring girls to put together a video of swimsuit dancing competitions.
The lawsuit accuses the district of refusing to properly investigate the coach and allowing the coach to have continued access to the plaintiffs. They further allege that someone at the district leaked details of the girls’ report and their identities, resulting in other students bullying, threatening, and targeting the plaintiffs.
“I was out dancing with my friends and all of a sudden, I see a girl come through, and she shoved me to the ground so hard that I almost did a somersault," said one of the plaintiffs, "and I remember looking at my friends, and they were like, 'Oh, my gosh.'"
"I went to the school after, and they said if there’s no video evidence, they can't do anything. They told me I should have told them beforehand that I was going to a school dance."
Along with the coaching staff changing the playing time of the students involved, they say they were later cut from the team. The lawsuit also claims that when the students reported the attacks in the aftermath of the accusations, the district failed to protect them.
"Davis School District takes allegations of misconduct seriously. The District does not comment on pending litigation. This approach protects the integrity of the legal process," the district said in a statement.
The plaintiffs say that over the past several years, they've suffered psychologically, emotionally, and physically.
“It’s been really hard," said one of the plaintiffs. "For both of us, I think this will impact our lives for the rest of our lives, but speaking today and talking about it is part of getting back our voices, which was taken from us.”
