Doe v. Lawndale Elementary School Dist.

• Decision Date: 30 November 2021
• Docket Number: B305551
• Citation: 72 Cal.App.5th 113,287 Cal.Rptr.3d 154
• Parties: Jane DOE, a Minor, etc., Plaintiff and Appellant, v. LAWNDALE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL DISTRICT et al., Defendants and Respondents.
• Court: California Court of Appeals Court of Appeals

72 Cal.App.5th 113

287 Cal.Rptr.3d 154

Jane DOE, a Minor, etc., Plaintiff and Appellant,

v.LAWNDALE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL DISTRICT et al., Defendants and Respondents.

B305551

Court of Appeal, Second District, Division 7, California.

Filed November 30, 2021

Esner, Chang & Boyer, Holly N. Boyer, Shea S. Murphy, Kevin K. Nguyen, Pasadena; Taylor & Ring, David M. Ring and Brendan P. Gilbert, Manhattan Beach, for Plaintiff and Appellant.

Tyson & Mendes, Susan L. Oliver, San Diego, Raymond K. Wilson, Jr., and Emily S. Berman, Los Angeles, for Defendants and Respondents.

SEGAL, J.

INTRODUCTION

When Jane Doe was 13 years old, 26-year-old Jason Farr, an employee of Lawndale Elementary School District and a music instructor at Doe's school, sexually assaulted her. Doe sued the District for negligence and for breach of the mandatory duty to report suspected abuse under the Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Act ( Pen. Code, § 11164 et seq. ) (CANRA). The trial court granted the District's motion for summary judgment, ruling the District did not have a duty to protect Doe from sexual abuse unless it knew Farr had previously engaged in sexual misconduct with minors or had a propensity to do so. The court also ruled that, because Farr's conduct was "ambiguous," it did not give rise to a duty of care and that there were no triable issues of material fact regarding whether the District knew about Farr's misconduct. Finally, the court ruled Doe could not prevail on her cause of action for violation of CANRA because none of the District's employees knew or reasonably suspected Farr had abused her.

We conclude, consistent with California negligence law, that school administrators have a duty to protect students from sexual abuse by school employees, even if the school does not have actual knowledge of a particular employee's history of committing, or propensity to commit, such abuse. Therefore, we reverse the trial court's order granting summary adjudication on Doe's negligence causes of action. But we also conclude, as a matter of first impression, that a plaintiff bringing a cause of action for breach of the mandatory duty to report suspected abuse under CANRA must prove it was objectively reasonable for a mandated reporter to suspect abuse based on the facts the reporter actually knew, not based on facts the reporter reasonably should have discovered. Because Doe did not create a triable issue of material fact regarding whether any of the District's employees knew of facts from which a reasonable person in a like position could suspect abuse, we affirm the trial court's order granting summary adjudication on Doe's CANRA cause of action.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

A. Farr Grooms Doe for Several Months, Then Sexually Assaults Her

When Doe was a seventh-grade student in one of the District's schools, she participated in the school's band program during regular school hours. Farr, an employee of the District, oversaw an afterschool program at the school called Realizing Amazing Potential (RAP) that gave students the opportunity to practice music in the band room and do homework in classrooms. After meeting Doe, Farr convinced her to join RAP. At the end of the academic year, Doe also joined the summer RAP program, which met on weekdays. Farr was an instructor in the summer RAP program.

After Doe joined RAP, Farr began to groom her for sexual abuse.¹ Farr found Doe's profile on a social media application and began to send her messages. After Farr told Doe he had intimate feelings for her, they began to talk on the phone. Farr also attended Doe's band class during regular school hours to be near her (even though he was not a teacher in the class). He spent time with Doe on the school campus, including time alone with her in the band room. He hugged her, played with her hair, and tickled her.

Eventually Farr began kissing Doe when they were alone together in the band room. In the fall of Doe's eighth-grade academic year, Farr had sexual contact with Doe, which included genital touching and oral sex. Farr continued to sexually abuse Doe until at least the spring of that academic year, when Doe's stepfather learned of the abuse. In March 2017 Farr was arrested; he ultimately pleaded guilty to oral copulation of a person under the age of 16.

B. Doe Files This Action Against the District, and the District Moves for Summary Judgment

Doe filed this action against the District and Farr (who is not a party to this appeal). Doe asserted two causes of action for negligence—one based on negligent hiring, supervision, and retention of Farr, and one based on negligent supervision of Doe. Doe also asserted a cause of action for breach of the mandatory duty to report suspected child abuse under Penal Code section 11166.

The District moved for summary adjudication on each of Doe's causes of action and for summary judgment. For the negligence causes of action, the basis of the District's motion was not clear. Despite setting forth the applicable standard—that the District was entitled to summary adjudication if it showed Doe could not establish "one or more elements of [her] cause of action"—the District did not state in its motion which element(s) the District was claiming Doe could not establish. It appears, however, the District was arguing it had no duty to protect Doe from sexual abuse by Farr.² The District argued that it could not be liable for failing to supervise Doe and Farr unless and until it had "actual knowledge" of Farr's abuse of Doe or of "prior sexual misconduct by [Farr]" and that it was undisputed none of the District employees knew Farr sexually abused Doe or anyone else until the police arrested Farr. The District also argued that Farr's conduct was "ambiguous" and that it could not be liable for failing to protect Doe from sexual abuse if it knew only about conduct by Farr the District claimed was "ambiguous." Therefore, according to the District, it "had no duty or ability to supervise [Doe] at the time the[ ] alleged sexual acts occurred." For Doe's cause of action for breach of the mandatory duty to report suspected child abuse, the District contended Doe could not show that any District employee knew or reasonably suspected Farr had sexually abused Doe.

In opposition to the motion, Doe argued that, because school districts have a special relationship with their students, the District had an ongoing duty to protect Doe from foreseeable harm, including sexual abuse, and that therefore the District's duty was not "triggered only upon actual knowledge of a sexual relationship." Regarding her cause of action for breach of the mandatory duty to report suspected child abuse, Doe argued the applicable standard was not whether District employees in fact knew or suspected Farr had abused Doe, but whether they "should have formed a suspicion of child abuse and reported such suspicions."

Doe also submitted evidence she asserted showed the District failed to take reasonable steps to prevent Farr from abusing her. She submitted deposition testimony from several of her peers who had observed Farr's behavior. Several students stated that Farr was always with Doe at school and that he always sat or stood next to her during band practice (the program Farr did not teach). Several students said that Farr and Doe regularly "flirted" with each other and that Farr frequently tickled and hugged Doe and played with her hair. Multiple students stated that Doe sometimes rested her head on Farr's shoulder when he hugged her and that Doe wore Farr's jacket at school. According to one student, Doe became upset when Farr would not let her sit on his lap. The student also stated that she walked in on Doe and Farr alone together in the band room at least 20 times and that she felt as though she was "intruding on a couple." Another student witnessed disagreements between Doe and Farr where Doe would cry—interactions the student described as "girlfriend/boyfriend-type" behavior. By the late fall of Doe's eighth-grade year, most of the students in the RAP program were talking about Farr's unusual behavior. As one student stated, it was "obvious" to the students something was going on between Farr and Doe.

Doe also submitted a declaration from Dr. Robert Fraisse, a school administrator and former superintendent of several school districts, who stated that, during his 45-year career, he supervised and trained school administrators in the supervision of school staff. According to Dr. Fraisse, the various interactions between Farr and Doe, as witnessed by Doe's classmates, were examples of "open and obvious" predatory behavior that "clearly gave rise to an appearance of impropriety." In Dr. Fraisse's opinion, given the seriousness and frequency of Farr's behavior, Farr's supervisors failed "to spot[ ] and respond[ ] to red flags." Dr. Fraisse also reviewed the deposition testimony of Farr's direct supervisor, Diana Villareal, who stated she only checked in on Farr's interactions with students about once a week. In Dr. Fraisse's opinion, such supervision was insufficient, "particularly ... given that Farr would be the only adult present with his students in enclosed structures, i.e., the band room."

In its reply, the District asserted boilerplate objections to essentially all of Dr. Fraisse's opinions, including that his opinions "lack[ed] foundation," were "[i]nadmissible speculation, conclusions and opinions," "misstate[d] [the] evidence presented," "assumed facts not in evidence," were "vague and ambiguous," and were "irrelevant." The District did not provide any further argument in support of its objections.

C. The Trial Court Grants the District's Motion for Summary Judgment

The trial court granted the District's motion for summary judgment. The court, without explanation, also sustained the District's objections to Dr. Fraisse's declaration.³ Although the record is not entirely clear, the court appears to have ruled the District had a duty to protect Doe from...