A.T. v. Everett Sch. Dist.

300 F. Supp. 3d 1243
CourtDistrict Court, W.D. Washington
DecidedJanuary 9, 2018
DocketCASE NO. C16–1536JLR
StatusPublished
Cited by6 cases

This text of 300 F. Supp. 3d 1243 (A.T. v. Everett Sch. Dist.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, W.D. Washington primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
A.T. v. Everett Sch. Dist., 300 F. Supp. 3d 1243 (W.D. Wash. 2018).

Opinion

JAMES L. ROBART, United States District Judge

I. INTRODUCTION

This matter comes before the court on Defendants Everett School District and Carol Whitehead's (collectively, "the District") first and second motions for summary judgment (1st MSJ (Dkt. # 57); 2d *1247MSJ (Dkt. # 59) ), and Defendant Craig Verver's motion for summary judgment (Verver MSJ (Dkt. # 61) ). A.T. opposes the motions (see 1st Resp. (Dkt. # 63); 2d Resp. (Dkt. # 69); Verver Resp. (Dkt. # 68) ), and all Defendants have filed replies (see 1st Reply (Dkt. # 66); 2d Reply (Dkt. # 74); Verver Reply (Dkt. # 77) ). Having considered these submissions, the relevant portions of the record, and the applicable law, the court, considering itself fully advised, GRANTS the District's first motion for summary judgment (1st MSJ) and GRANTS Mr. Verver's motion for summary judgment (Verver MSJ). The court also DENIES the District's second motion for summary judgment (2d MSJ) as moot. Accordingly, the court dismisses this case with prejudice.

II. BACKGROUND

A.T.1 attended Cascade High School in the Everett School District from 1999 to 2003. (1st Resp. at 6.) Mr. Verver was one of A.T.'s teachers during the 2001-2002 and 2002-2003 school years. (Id. at 6; see also SAC (Dkt. # 28) ¶ 7.) A.T. was also a cabinet member of the National Honor Society, for which Mr. Verver served as a faculty adviser. (1st Resp. at 6.) During the 2001-2002 school year, Mr. Verver singled out A.T. in class, teased her,2 and gave her special attention. (Id. ; see also Cochran Decl. (Dkt. # 65) ¶ 15, Ex. N ("A.T. Interrogatories") at 202.) Mr. Verver told A.T. that she would need to take "calculated risks" to be exceptional enough to stand out for college admissions. (SAC ¶ 9.) At the end of the school year, Mr. Verver encouraged A.T. to run for Honor Society president, a position that required working closely with him in his capacity as faculty adviser. (Id. ¶ 10.) A.T. was elected Honor Society president for the following year, and Mr. Verver gave A.T. his personal contact information so that they could be in touch over the summer. (Id. ; 1st Resp. at 6.)

In October 2002, while A.T. was 17-years-old, A.T. attended a school dance. (A.T. Interrogatories at 198.) After the dance, A.T. stayed to help clean up. (Id. ) While there, Mr. Verver kept A.T. for hours and engaged her in conversation about their "unique relationship." (Id. ) Mr. Verver also told A.T. that "he worried about his role in her life and was envious of her parents because A.T. might leave him after graduation while she would always be her parents' child." (SAC ¶ 11.) Mr. Verver expressed to A.T. that he was concerned about her future and protective of who she may choose to date or marry. (Id. ) Mr. Verver also shared with A.T. that he was having marital problems. (A.T. Interrogatories at 198.) At the end of their conversation, Mr. Verver gave A.T. "a very long and close hug." (Id. ) After this date, Mr. Verver frequently hugged A.T. closely when she left his classroom if she had been there on the weekends or after school. (Id. at 200.)

Around two weeks after the school dance, Mr. Verver confided in A.T. that his wife was pregnant and that he was "crushed about the news." (Id. at 198-99.) A.T. also began confiding in Mr. Verver about her relationships with boys. (Id. at 199.) During one conversation, A.T. told Mr. Verver that she was uncomfortable being physical with her boyfriends. (Id. ) In response, Mr. Verver sat next to A.T. on the couch in his classroom and asked, *1248"[D]o you feel uncomfortable about me sitting here?" (Id. ) He then put his hand on A.T.'s thigh and asked A.T. whether she would be able to say "no" if a date put his hand on her thigh. (Id. )

A.T. turned 18 on January 5, 2003. (SAC ¶ 14.) Later that month, she visited Mr. Verver's classroom. (Id. ) Mr. Verver greeted A.T. with a hug and a kiss on the cheek. (Id. ; see also A.T. Interrogatories at 203.) The next time A.T. saw Mr. Verver, he asked her how she felt about the kiss. (A.T. Interrogatories at 203.) A.T. told Mr. Verver that it made her nervous. (Id. ) Mr. Verver kissed her again on the cheek. (Id. )

At the end of January 2003, A.T. was in Mr. Verver's classroom on a weekend. (Id. at 204.) Mr. Verver told A.T. that he was going to "steal a kiss" and kissed A.T. on the mouth. (Id. ) A.T. became "physically upset" and "started trembling and twitching uncontrollably." (Id. ) Mr. Verver told A.T. that he was going to "steal another kiss" and kissed her again. (Id. ) Mr. Verver suggested that they move to the couch, and Mr. Verver kissed A.T. and tried to put his hands up her shirt, though A.T. resisted. (Id. ) A.T. felt "humiliated" and "scared" about making Mr. Verver angry "if she said that wasn't what she wanted" and "blamed herself for making him have that misunderstanding." (Id. at 204-05.) When A.T. returned home that day, she "hid in her closet" and cried uncontrollably. (Id. at 205.) The next school day, Mr. Verver pulled A.T. aside before school started to discuss what had happened between them. (Id. ) Mr. Verver told A.T. it could never happen again, but then pulled her in and kissed her, saying, "[W]ell, we both knew we couldn't help ourselves." (Id. )

The sexual relationship between A.T. and Mr. Verver continued to escalate. (Id. at 205-06.) After school, on the weekends, and even sometimes during school hours, Mr. Verver would invite A.T. into his classroom, lock the door, and engage in intimate contact with A.T. (Id. ) The sexual contact occurred two to three times a week for the rest of A.T.'s senior year, ranging from kissing to sexual intercourse. (Id. at 205-11.) The first time A.T. and Mr. Verver had sexual intercourse was on April 26, 2003. (Id. at 208.) A.T. went to Mr. Verver's classroom to gather supplies for a car wash. (Id. ) Mr. Verver produced a condom and asked A.T. to put one on him. (Id. ) A.T. hesitated, and Mr. Verver told her, "If you want me to wear this then you have to put it on me." (Id. ) A.T. acquiesced, and the two had sexual intercourse. (Id. ) After this encounter, Mr. Verver and A.T. had sex on multiple occasions in his classroom and in other locations at the school. (Id. at 210.)

Throughout the 2002-2003 school year, teachers who frequently stopped by Mr. Verver's classroom after school and on the weekends would find A.T in his classroom. (SAC ¶ 19.) On some occasions, Mr. Verver's door was locked. (Id. ) Upon Mr. Verver opening the door, teachers would find A.T. on his couch. (Id. ) In addition, teachers also saw Mr. Verver give A.T. rides home from school. (Id. )

A.T. graduated from high school in summer 2003, and began attending the University of Washington that fall. (1st Resp. at 8-9; A.T. Interrogatories at 213-14.) A.T. eventually graduated from the University of Washington in 2008, with bachelor's degrees in English and French. (Id. ) While A.T. studied at the University of Washington, she and Mr. Verver continued their sexual relationship. (1st Resp. at 9.) On January 8, 2006, A.T.

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300 F. Supp. 3d 1243, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/at-v-everett-sch-dist-wawd-2018.