FRESNO - A Fresno County resident is suing the Clovis Unified School District (USD), alleging to have been sexually assaulted as a child by Stacey Aprile, then a teacher at Red Bank Elementary School in Clovis.
The suit was filed by attorney James W. Lewis on behalf of a plaintiff only identified as “John Doe” in the Fresno County Superior Court, according to court documents.
The suit alleges that the assaults began in 1993 or 1994, while the plaintiff was 12 years old and Aprile was in her 20s. The suit also alleges that sexual assaults and abuse continued through to the time that the plaintiff was 17 years old.
Aprile is alleged to have been a teacher or student teacher in the plaintiff’s sixth-grade classroom, and was under the direct supervision of a master teacher, as well as other Clovis USD supervisory staff. It is also alleged that Clovis USD received multiple complaints from parents of students alleging improper behaviors such as spending time alone with the students outside of school, speaking with children about improper topics, and having phone conversations with students unrelated to school.
The suit alleges that school administrators should have seen the close relationship between Aprile and the plaintiff, as well as the significant amount of time spent alone together, as a “red flag.” Aprile additionally is alleged to have engaged in hours-long phone conversations with the plaintiff unrelated to school, which the suit characterizes as “grooming” behavior.
The suit alleges that a criminal complaint was filed by the plaintiff against Aprile in 2006, but that plaintiff was intimidated into silence by Aprile’s lawyer at that time.
The plaintiff is seeking an award for damages both economic and non-economic, as well as punitive damages from Aprile.