Audrie Pott's Family Files Claim Against Los Gatos-Saratoga Union High School District

The parents of former Saratoga High School student Audrie Pott, 15, who killed herself Sept. 10, 2012, filed on Tuesday a government claim against the Los Gatos-Saratoga Union High School District to preserve their right to future legal action.

The claim generally alleges that Saratoga High School administrators were negligent in addressing the alleged bullying the girl is said to have encountered while enrolled at the elite school for two years.

Last Thursday, two youth at SHS and one at Christopher High School in Gilroy were taken into custody on two counts of sexual battery—one felony and one misdemeanor—and one additional count of possession and distribution of harmful matter depicting the victim, which is a felony.

"We will continue to investigate the potential liability of the District for the death of Audrie and if we gather sufficient evidence we will be filing a civil claim in Superior Court," a statement emailed to the media by family attorney Robert Allard said. 

"We continue to be gravely concerned about several actions taken by the District," the statement added, listing five actions the family alleges took place.

• Failing to document a meeting that the Pott family had with administrators concerning the bullying of Audrie in the spring of 2012
• Announcing Audrie’s death over the loud speaker to the student body before the family realized that she had died
• Making the determination shortly after Audrie’s death that, despite compelling evidence to the contrary, bullying played no role in the tragedy
• Failing to expel the three boys from school despite clear evidence of a sexual assault
• Using school resources, through its school newspaper or otherwise, to conduct a “head count” of the students who laid eyes on a photograph of the sexual assault on Audrie to rebut a claim of a “viral” distribution instead of getting to the bottom as to why at least 10 students did not report what they saw to either school officials or the authorities.

"It is becoming increasingly apparent to us that, sadly, the District has repeatedly placed the interests of Audrie and her family well behind its own,” Allard said in the statement.

The claim was not released by the attorney for review by the media. An email and a phone call district officials seeking comment about the claim weren't immediately returned by the time of this posting.

Criminal attorney and legal analyst Steven Clark, present during a Monday press conference in San Jose to allow Audrie's parents—Larry and Sheila Pott and step-mother Lisa Pott—to speak about the case, explained the claim is a precursor to a lawsuit that must be filed within six months of the alleged crime or injury.

The claim now gives the opportunity to the LGSUHSD to respond to the allegations and, if not resolved, the family can proceed with a lawsuit.

"It doesn't necessarily mean that they're going to sue the school district," Clark said. "But it preserves the right to sue the school district."

The procedural requirement rarely solves cases and is hardly settled in a timely manner. "It gives them an opportunity to settle the case and puts them on notice of the potential lawsuit for purposes of budgeting," Clark added.

A non-response from the district is a denial of the claim, which means the matter could end up in a lawsuit.

During a Monday press conference to discuss the case with the media for the first time, Audrie's parents said they had met with SHS Principal Paul Robinson at the end of September and that they had asked him to expel the boys, but were told the school couldn't do it.

"We have questions about why they were expelled from sports, but they weren't expelled from school," Allard said, alluding to boys membership in the school's football team.

Lisa Pott said Robinson told them the boys were not expelled because the alleged crime didn't happen on campus.

The parents claim in a wrongful death lawsuit that the teens, 16, and the homeowners of the Saratoga residence where the party took place during Labor Day weekend Sept. 2, 2012, were negligent.

They also allege that on the night of the party, Audrie's shorts were removed and that she had writings or drawings on her body, including near her intimate parts. A week later, they contend, the girl discovered that the boys had taken photographs of her while she was intoxicated, depicting her and the drawings on her body, and that the photos were taken with one of the boy's phones.

One or more photographs were publicized to other students at SHS in person or via electronic means including - but not limited to - text messages, according to the suit.

" ... We tried to appeal to the fact that the pictures [were] being viewed at the school and the bullying and talking among themselves, that all happened on campus," Lisa Pott said.

Lisa Pott said the cyberbullying clause in the education code qualified for grounds for removal of the boys.

Larry Pott said he hoped the boys, who appeared on Tuesday before a juvenile court judge, would remain incarcerated.  "These boys .. have a history. They showed no remorse. What they did was disgusting," he said.

—Comprehensive coverage of the Audrie Pott case can be found on our topic page by clicking here.