Relevant Documents:
Fast Facts
Where is the case filed? The case is filed in the U.S. District Court, Central District of Illinois under the name Peden et al v. Taylorville Community Unit School District #3 et al. The case number is 3:25-cv-03176-SEM-DJQ
What is the age and status of Jane Doe? Jane was 10yo at the time of the abuse and is currently 12yo. She has special needs. She is still going to school but is in extensive and ongoing therapy on a weekly basis.
When and where did the abuse occur? To our current knowledge, it happened the final week of January 2024 on the school bus ride from Taylorville Junior High School to the community center in Stonington. Abuse happened at the Community Center on at least three occasions.
Who is the perpetrator? We are respecting the privacy of the perpetrator because he was 14yo at the time of his acts of abuse, and is still a minor. We are not giving further information about him at this time and he is referred to in the complaint as “the perpetrator.” He is no longer attending Taylorville Junior High.
What did the parents do after learning of the abuse? Filed a police report. Sought an emergency order of protection which they served on the District. Pursued criminal proceedings against the perpetrator which are now ongoing. Reported the abuse to school officials, including now former principal Eric Bruder.
What did the school do?
- Placed the perpetrator on a different bus with children as young or younger than Jane;
- Entered an ineffective and wholly inadequate safety plan that did nothing to guarantee he could not access Jane;
- Noting multiple times and in pointed, obvious fashion, that the abuse occurred off of District grounds;
- Denying any knowledge of prior problems by the perpetrator;
- Accusing, tacitly, Jane’s parents of shifting their allegations;
- Accusing, tacitly, Jane of shifting her story, and discounting the fact that sexual abuse victims such as Jane have a well-documented hard time recounting their abuse because of, inter alia, the shameful and embarrassing nature of the conduct involved;
- Minimizing District officials’ knowledge of the order of protection;
- Limiting the scope of the investigation “to the complaint at issue” and refusing to conduct a broader investigation into the perpetrator’s behavior beyond January and February 2024; and,
- Failing to preserve bus footage from longer periods despite knowing of the need to do so.
Did the school know about this in advance?
- We have received information that the school had had previous issues with this individual, and we will be seeking as much about this as possible in discovery.
- Two people have contacted the parents to alert them that the perpetrator engaged in sex-based activity on younger children before and that his behavior was alarming.
- We also received a call from someone at the school alerting the parents that the perpetrator has a history of behavioral problems with the School