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TRENTON
– Attorney General Paula T. Dow and
the Division on Civil Rights announced today
the Division has issued a Finding of Probable
Cause against the Board of Education in
Emerson Borough, Bergen County for allegedly
failing to take sufficient steps to stop
the harassment and bullying of a male student
that went on for six years.
Named
as sole Respondent in the Finding of Probable
Cause, the Emerson Board of Education oversees
a district made up of three schools including
two elementary schools and the Emerson Junior/Senior
High School. According to the Division,
the district failed to effectively deal
with continued verbal, physical and cyber-harassment
of the male student – identified only
as J.C., Jr. – that began in 2002
and continued through 2007. The harassment
occurred while J.C. was attending junior
and senior high school in Emerson, and was
focused on the student’s perceived
sexual orientation.
The alleged harassment, which was reported
to school officials numerous times, included
name-calling and derogatory remarks from
other students about J.C’s perceived
homosexuality, as well as physical assaults
and threats of violence. In addition, students
on one occasion created a page on a social
networking Web site that described J.C.’s
sexual orientation as “unknown,”
and also depicted him as a female. Students
also are alleged to have circulated derogatory
drawings of J.C., including at least one
that depicted him performing a sex act on
another male.
“Our
investigation suggests that this young man
was the target of consistent harassment
for a period of years and that, despite
the existence of a written ‘zero tolerance’
policy regarding such conduct, his fellow
students routinely subjected him to the
kind of torment no one should have to endure,”
said Attorney General Dow.
“Anti-bullying
policies are only effective if they are
enforced,” said Division on Civil
Rights Director Chinh Q. Le. “School
districts have a duty to actively prevent
harassment. They have a duty to create and
maintain a safe, nurturing and bullying-free
learning environment. When the kind of conduct
alleged here rears its ugly head, they are
obligated to take affirmative steps reasonably
calculated to end the harassment.”
The
Emerson school district has denied that
J.C. was a victim of discrimination. The
district also contends that any incidents
of harassment or bullying reported by J.C.,
as well as any student actions against J.C.
that warranted discipline, were dealt with
accordingly.
However,
the Finding of Probable Cause notes that
J.C.’s parents reported at least 17
instances of harassment to Emerson school
officials, yet the parents of students implicated
in those incidents were not contacted. In
addition, it appears from records maintained
by the school district that meaningful discipline
was rarely imposed.
According
to the Finding of Probable Cause, J.C. was
the target of such slurs as “gay,”
“homo” and “faggot”
during significant portions of his junior
high and high school years. The Finding
of Probable Cause notes that Dean of Students
Robert E. Carcich confirmed to Division
investigators that he received many complaints
from J.C.’s parents about incidents
of alleged name-calling and bullying. Carcich
told investigators that, in each case, he
spoke to witnesses who failed to corroborate
J.C’s allegations. However, Carcich
was unable to provide documentation to support
his account.
In
early 2004, J.C. was allegedly punched in
the stomach by a fellow middle school student.
J.C. reported the incident to his parents,
who spoke to the attacking student’s
mother about it. Approximately a month later,
the same student allegedly threatened to
slit J.C.’s throat if he ever talked
about him behind his back again.
In September 2005, J.C. was allegedly assaulted
in high school wood shop class by a different
student. J.C.’s father complained
by e-mail to high school principal Israel
Bordainick and Assistant Principal Richard
Orso, and as a result J.C.’s class
schedule was changed. The Finding of Probable
Cause notes that there is no evidence the
assaulting student was disciplined, or that
his schedule was altered in any way. The
Finding of Probable Cause also notes that
Principal Bordainick sent an e-mail to J.C.’s
father asserting that it was J.C. who’d
instigated the wood shop incident.
In
May 2006, another student -- identified
in the Finding of Probable Cause only as
M.F. -- allegedly menaced J.C. by telling
him he intended to bring a gun to school.
The Emerson Police Department was notified,
and a subsequent search of M.F.’s
home resulted in the seizure of guns and
knives belonging to both M.F. and his father.
According
to the Division, M.F. was placed in a psychiatric
facility for evaluation. He was detained
for weapons possession but later released
and allowed to return to school. In September
2006, J.C.’s father advised Emerson
Superintendent Vincent Taffaro that he was
concerned for J.C.’s safety because
-- despite assurances that M.F. would not
be allowed near J.C -- M.F. was scheduled
to be in three classes with J.C. that school
year. The superintendent allegedly responded
that the matter had been handled within
school district guidelines, and that the
district had sought the expert opinions
of a psychiatrist and the local police before
allowing M.F. to return to school. Taffaro
also advised J.C.’s father he could
seek a restraining order if he felt it necessary.
For
an 11-day period in April 2007, J.C. underwent
home schooling after a physician treating
him wrote to district officials and advised
that J.C. had been suffering from stress,
which he blamed on being bullied. J.C. resumed
in-school study in mid-April 2007 and, as
part of his re-entry, was assigned an aide
to help him avoid bullying situations. However,
a harassing incident involving three other
students occurred within a month. After
another alleged incident involving a threat
by a fellow student on May 17, 2007, J.C.
was afforded home schooling for the remainder
of the academic year.
A Finding of Probable Cause does not resolve
a civil rights complaint. Rather, it means
the State has concluded its preliminary
investigation and determined there is sufficient
evidence to support a reasonable suspicion
New Jersey’s Law Against Discrimination
(LAD) has been violated. The LAD provides
that each Respondent found to have committed
a violation is subject to a penalty of up
to $10,000. The LAD also provides for other
remedies, including compensatory damages
and injunctive relief, such as changes in
the employer's policies and management/staff
training.
Now
that the Division has issued a Finding of
Probable Cause, the Emerson Board of Education
case will be referred for a process known
as Conciliation. If Conciliation is not
successful, the matter will be referred
for a non-jury trial before an Administrative
Law Judge. Once the trial is completed,
the presiding Administrative Law Judge will
issue a written Initial Decision.
Attorney
General Dow and Division Director Le thanked
Investigator Adriana Tovar, Paterson Regional
Manager Carolyn Paul, Legal Specialist Benn
Meistrich, and Deputy Attorney General Charles
Cohen for their work on the Emerson Board
of Education case.
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