WELCH – The parents of a Mount View Middle School student say their daughter was sexually assaulted at school earlier this school year.
The girl, identified only as Jane Doe, filed the complaint by her mother Kim Doe and father John Doe in McDowell Circuit Court against the McDowell County Board of Education, Dreama Johnson, Leon Gravely and student J.M. Jr., by his parents Jessie M. and Daria Z-M. Johnson is a teacher, and Gravely is an administrative employee.
According to the complaint, the plaintiff Jane Doe was a student at Mount View Middle in the fall of 2021. Early in the fall of 2021, another unidentified student was sexually assaulted by J.M. Jr. after being dragged into the boys’ restroom, according to the complaint.
Travis A. Griffith
| protectingwv.com
The second unidentified student reported the incident to Deputy Lyle Noe, an officer stationed at the school after consulting with her mother via text message. Noe told Gravely, who called the girl into the office for questioning. Gravely questioned the girl without her parents present or without her parents being informed of the incident.
“Video was reviewed and displayed (the girl) exiting the boy’s bathroom with her head down texting,” the complaint states. “Gravely dismissed the allegations under the theory that if (the girl) was able to text, the situation had not occurred. …
“Gravely also mentioned that J.M. Jr. was an athlete at the school and was needed for sports.”
The complaint says Noe suggested Gravely put the boy on homebound while an investigation was conducted, but the request was ignored.
On November 16, 2021, the plaintiff Jane Doe says she was dragged into the boys’ restroom by J.M. Jr. and sexually assaulted.
“Jane Doe knew about the previous incident … and how she was treated and, therefore, made no report about the assault,” the complaint states.
In December 2021, the complaint says J.M. Jr. began attempted to coerce a male student whom he had previously sexually assaulted to meet him. That student informed Jane Doe of the advances. And soon thereafter, the complaint says a third female student was grabbed by J.M. Jr. “by the hair in a stairwell hallways and dragged under the stairs where she was sexually assaulted.”
The complaint says all of the assaults occurred when J.M. Jr. should have been in Johnson’s class.
After the third assault, Jane Doe went to teacher Amanda Miller to report what had been happening. Miller reported the allegations to Gravely, who then questioned Jane Doe. She says her parents were not contacted about the allegations of the assault and were not present or notified about her questioning.
The complaint says footage was reviewed, and the assaults were confirmed. J.M. Jr. currently is facing juvenile criminal charges for the sexual assaults.
“I think it’s ridiculous that the officer assigned to the school was ignored,” attorney Travis Griffith told The West Virginia Record. “One sexual assault on school grounds is one too many. Based on the administration’s conduct, now three girls have been victimized.
“Our children deserve better.”
The plaintiffs accuse the school board of breach of fiduciary duty, breach of special relationship duty, negligent supervision, negligence and intentional infliction of emotional distress. They accuse J.M. Jr. of battery, sexual assault and sexual abuse. They accuse Gravely, Johnson and the school board of negligence and gross negligence. They accuse all of the defendants of violations of the West Virginia Human Rights Act.
They seek compensatory damages for past and future injuries sustained, punitive damages, pre- and post-judgment interest, attorney fees, court costs and other relief.
The plaintiffs are being represented by Griffith of Griffith Law Center in Charleston.
McDowell Circuit Court case number 22-C-6