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A former Dougherty Valley High School student is suing the San Ramon Valley Unified School District for negligence following serious injuries he allegedly sustained at the hands of students at a rival school after a basketball game last year.
The civil complaint filed in Contra Costa County Superior Court on Jan. 11 – a copy of which was recently obtained by DanvilleSanRamon.com – alleges that plaintiff Angel Brito sustained brain damage following a physical altercation in the Monte Vista High School parking lot in Danville on the night of Jan. 26, 2023. The lawsuit is being pursued on his behalf by guardian Melody Nichols, according to court documents.
In addition to naming one of the alleged attackers, the personal injury suit argues that SRVUSD and its employees were liable for negligence during the altercation, with no adult supervision or intervention. Also among the defendants are parents of the teen assailants.
“At the time of the attack, plaintiff was attempting to leave the parking lot to return to his home,” the family’s attorney Steven Jacobsen wrote in the lawsuit. “The attack took place in view of other Dougherty and MVHS students, and would have been visible to MVHS site supervisors, if any were present.”Â
SRVUSD representatives did not respond to a request for comment about the lawsuit as of publication time.
The attack by a group of Monte Vista students resulted injuries to the head, face and body, causing permanent brain damage as well as mental and physical trauma and “other injuries and damages not yet determined” for Brito, according to the lawsuit.
Jacobsen alleges that the boy was targeted specifically due to his Hispanic heritage, as well as points to a competitive atmosphere between students from Dougherty Valley and Monte Vista during and following a basketball game between the two schools’ teams that was facilitated by the school district.
“The basketball game between Dougherty and MVHS was knowingly conducted by the District and its employees in such a way as to amplify the feeling of conflict and competition between the students of each of the competing schools,” Jacobsen wrote.Â
That evening’s game was a particularly tense and close one, with Monte Vista’s team securing a narrow win at the home game over Dougherty Valley for a final score of 61-64.
Monte Vista principal Kevin Ahern acknowledged and condemned the assault in a message to the school community the following day on Jan. 27, 2023.
“I am very disappointed to share that after last night’s basketball game between Monte Vista and Dougherty Valley, several Monte Vista students physically assaulted a student from Dougherty Valley in our parking lot,” Ahern wrote last year. “This incident of violence is completely unacceptable on our school campus and has no place in our community.”
“We are all responsible for creating a safe and welcoming environment on the MV Campus and we need to ensure that this goodwill extends to any visitors to our school,” he continued. “On behalf of the Monte Vista community, I would like to express our deepest apologies to the Dougherty Valley students and families for the actions of the Monte Vista students who participated in this act of violence.”
Dougherty Valley principal Evan Powell forwarded Ahern’s message to students at his school in neighboring San Ramon and said that administration had contacted the DVHS students impacted “to ensure they are ok and cared for.”
The public response was too late however, according to the lawsuit, which argues that the attack was able to proceed to the point where Brito lost consciousness and sustained permanent injuries with no intervention from school or district staff.Â
“The District’s employees negligently failed to conduct and supervise the school activity and the assailants in a manner which was designed to provide a safe environment for plaintiff, by failing to monitor the assailants’ and other students’ activity so that assaults would not escalate into physical batteries,” Jacobsen wrote. “Defendants failed to attend to the safety of the students, including plaintiff, and failed to exercise reasonable care to prevent other students from harming plaintiff.
In addition to naming the district as a defendant in the case, the complaint for unspecified damages names one of the Monte Vista students who was allegedly behind the attack, as well as a slew of yet-unidentified “Doe” defendants including district staff members, other Monte Vista students involved and the parents of those students.Â
None of the defendants have yet filed a response to the original complaint. The case is set for its first hearing – a case management conference – on May 13 at 8:30 a.m.
