Note: This story contains allegations of sexual assault and harassment.
The parent of a Nashville student with special needs received a $250,000 payout in two lawsuits over that say her daughter was sexually assaulted by another student and shown sexually explicit images by a third student.
Juana Martinez filed the separate lawsuits in Davidson County Circuit Court against the Nashville government, which encompasses Metro Nashville Public Schools, in 2024 and 2025. The MNPS board voted to approve a settlement that encompassed both suits during its regular meeting on Sept. 22. While all three students are named in the court documents, The Tennessean is not naming them due to the sensitive nature of the cases.
The 2024 complaint says Martinez's daughter
was born with Down syndrome and was an adult student at the Harris-Hillman School, which serves students ages 3-22 with disabilities. During a school bus ride in August 2023, the suit says, her daughter was seated next to a male student who sexually assaulted her and exposed himself to her.
Martinez said this happened despite school rules prohibiting students from sitting next to each other on the bus, and despite Martinez previously reporting the same student for inappropriately touching her daughter and requesting that he have no contact with her, according to the lawsuit. Martinez said she was told in a parent-teacher meeting after making the report that the school would keep the student away from her daughter and "keep an eye on him."
"Neither the bus driver nor the bus monitor was monitoring the students at this moment, and they failed to observe the assault or take any action to stop or prevent it," the lawsuit says.
Martinez's daughter then told a teacher what happened, according to the suit.
"She was traumatized and humiliated," the document reads. "She was crying uncontrollably when her mother arrived at the school."
The suit said police were notified, Martinez agreed to press charges and her daughter was required to submit a rape kit. The male student was then arrested and removed from the school, the documents show. The suit states the assault was captured on video inside the bus, but a response from the district in the suit said it was not captured due to the location of the seat.
The suit describes Martinez's daughter as happy, thriving, gaining confidence and independence, and enthusiastic to explore the world around her before the assault. Afterward, it says, her demeanor changed, and she became frightful and anxious, no longer wanted to go to school or work, and suffered nightmares and depression. Martinez said she has also experienced "severe emotional distress" as she watches her daughter suffer.
The second lawsuit says another student showed Martinez's daughter sexually explicit images on a cell phone during class around a year after the sexual assault, despite assurances that her daughter would be protected from further harassment by other students. The suit says the images "disturbed and re-traumatized" Martinez's daughter and "further eroded her trust in the ... adults around her."
Mother says MNPS was negligent, failed to protect her daughter
Both suits include one count of negligence and reckless acts, saying MNPS failed to protect Martinez's daughter from harm. The first suit also accuses the district of failing to properly investigate the inappropriate touching it says happened before the sexual assault. Martinez sought damages in both suits, including health care expenses and legal costs, up to Tennessee's $300,000 cap on certain claims against governments or the state.
In its responses to the suits, the district largely denied the allegations. The responses include a number of arguments that MNPS was not at fault, including one that states Martinez's daughter was "at fault for failing to seek the intervention of the staff" in both situations and to otherwise report any "uncomfortable circumstances" to them. It also says the other students involved were at fault for their actions.
A lawyer representing Martinez declined to comment on the cases, along with a lawyer representing MNPS.
Reach the free 24/7 crisis line with the Sexual Assault Center at 1-800-879-1999 or the free National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-4673. Free, expert medical evaluation and crisis counseling in response to child sexual abuse is also available through Our Kids at 615-341-4911.
Rachel Wegner covers education and children's issues for The Tennessean. Got a story you think she should hear? Reach her via email at RAwegner@tennessean.com. You can also find her on X or Bluesky under the handle RachelAnnWegner.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: MNPS pays out $250K in student sexual assault, harassment case
