BRUNSWICK

Mediation over a complaint that the school district didn’t do enough to protect a former Brunswick Junior High School student from being bullied has failed, according to the Maine Human Rights Commission, meaning the issue could head to court.

Information regarding the commission’s conciliation is confidential, according to Commissioner Amy Sneirson.

“Despite the commission’s window for conciliation passing, we have certainly not given up on reconciling this matter with the family,” said Brunswick Superintendent Paul Perzanoski in an email to The Times Record.

The mother of the former student alleges that between August 2010 and August 2012 her son was subjected to repeated instances of bullying and harassment due to his “perceived sexual orientation” that went to such extremes that the boy became suicidal, according to the commission’s investigator’s report released June 13.

He stopped attending Brunswick Junior High School, after telling his mother in October 2012 that he had been sexually assaulted three times between 2011 and 2012, according to the investigator’s report.

The boy was admitted to the hospital in December 2012 for “suicidal ideation,” after which he was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of the sexual assaults, according to the report.

No criminal charges were ever filed as a result, however.

In early 2013, an agreement was signed with the superintendent’s office to allow the boy to attend a different school district.

In July, the five-member commission, in a 3-2 vote, decided there was reasonable grounds to believe discrimination occurred. The commission was acting on a recommendation included in the investigator’s report that stated there is an even chance that allegations, including assault and harassment at the hands of other students, could be proven in court.

The school district and the family then went into an arbitration process, as dictated by state law, also known as conciliation.

The commission’s compliance manager declared that conciliation had failed on Oct. 14, according to Sneirson.

Both the complainant and the commission have 90 days from that date to file complaints in court.

If the commission does bring suit, it would do so not as representing the complainant, but “in the name of the commission for the use of the victim of the alleged discrimination” in accordance with Maine statute, said Sneirson.

This would be a suit in the public interest, to remedy discrimination, she said.

The commission may discuss litigation during its meeting on Nov. 17.

The family has the option to file a suit, whether or not the commission files a suit of its own.

“It is also possible that the parties could still resolve the case via agreement, as there is no reason they cannot still discuss resolution before a lawsuit is filed or even afterward,” Sneirson wrote in an email to The Times Record. “The commission remains hopeful that all three parties (complainant, respondent, commission) can reach an agreement that resolves the concerns both of the complainant and also of the commission.”

Efforts to reach the family’s attorney’s were unsuccessful.

Meanwhile, Perzanoski defended the district’s policies on bullying and harassment.

“The commission stated in the investigation that the district has sound policies. We have reviewed our procedures and will continue to do so,” wrote Perzanoski.

jswinconeck@timesrecord.com

The complaint

THE MOTHER OF the former student alleges that between August 2010 and August 2012 her son was subjected to repeated instances of bullying and harassment due to his “perceived sexual orientation” that went to such extremes that the boy became suicidal, according to the Maine Human Rights Commission’s investigator’s report released June 13.

The Times Record Sustaining Sponsor
We believe a community must be informed to thrive. bowdoin.edu