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Photo credit: Mount Desert Island, Maine coastline by P. Hughes / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
A former student from Mount Desert Island High School in Bar Harbor has expanded a federal lawsuit stemming from a 2024 assault on school grounds, adding the school system, Superintendent Michael Zboray and a Title IX claim alleging officials failed to respond adequately to known sex- and gender-related harassment before the attack, Bar Harbor Story reported.
The lawsuit was originally filed in May against Principal Matthew Haney. It alleges Haney knew there was a serious conflict between the two students before the assault, was present when violence resumed outside a school bus and told another adult not to intervene.
Lawsuit Alleges School Had Advance Warning
The underlying incident occurred in October 2024 after an altercation began aboard a school bus and continued when the bus arrived at Mount Desert Island High School.
According to the lawsuit, the plaintiff was struck repeatedly, including with a metal water bottle, bitten in the face and punched in the head and eye. The complaint says she suffered a concussion, a bite wound and post-traumatic stress symptoms.
The assault was recorded on cell phones and later circulated widely on social media.
The lawsuit alleges that school officials had reason to anticipate trouble before the students reached campus. According to court filings, the bus driver contacted Haney while en route to the school and requested a police response.
The plaintiff also alleges that she had previously reported problems involving the other student to Haney and a guidance counselor.
New Title IX Claim Focuses on Alleged Harassment Before Assault
The latest version of the lawsuit adds a claim under Title IX, the federal law prohibiting sex discrimination in educational programs and activities that receive federal funding.
According to the complaint, Haney knew before the assault that the plaintiff believed she was being targeted and that the conflict involved hostility connected to sex, gender, gender identity and perceived views about gender identity.
The plaintiff alleges that she previously told school officials the other student had accused her of being transphobic online and had made offensive gestures toward her.
Her attorneys contend the school’s response to those warnings left her more vulnerable to subsequent harassment and violence.
The school system receives federal funding and is therefore subject to Title IX, according to the lawsuit.
Principal Accused of Telling Others Not to Intervene
The lawsuit makes a separate federal civil-rights claim against Haney based on what allegedly happened when the bus arrived at the high school.
The complaint alleges that Haney was present as the altercation resumed and instructed the bus driver not to intervene.
Plaintiff’s attorneys argue that Haney did more than simply fail to act. They contend his actions may have placed the student in a more dangerous position by taking control of the response while preventing another adult from stepping in.
The defendants reject that characterization.
In an August court filing, their attorneys argued that the proposed amended complaint does not plausibly show that Haney took an affirmative action that created or increased the danger to the plaintiff. They have also argued that his alleged conduct does not meet the constitutional standard required for the civil-rights claim.
School Officials Dispute Title IX Allegations
Attorneys for the defendants have also challenged the new Title IX theory.
They argue that the conduct described by the plaintiff does not establish sex-based harassment or stereotyping and that the complaint improperly attempts to transform alleged inaction by school officials into discriminatory action.
An attorney for the defendants told the Bangor Daily News that school officials deny wrongdoing and remain confident the complaint will ultimately be dismissed.
Superintendent Zboray has declined to comment specifically on the pending litigation.
Before the lawsuit was filed, however, Zboray said school administrators are trained to use a range of de-escalation measures when responding to student altercations and that physical restraint is generally reserved for situations in which less restrictive measures are insufficient.
Maine law limits the circumstances under which school employees may physically restrain students.
Case Raises Questions About a School’s Duty to Respond
The expanded lawsuit has not established that the school system or its employees violated Title IX or the plaintiff’s constitutional rights. Those claims remain contested and will have to survive legal challenges before potentially reaching a jury.
But the case raises a broader issue that extends well beyond Mount Desert Island High School:
What responsibility does a school have when officials receive advance warnings that a student may be at risk of harassment or violence?
Title IX cases can involve more than misconduct by a school employee. In some circumstances, schools may face liability when officials have actual knowledge of serious sex-based harassment involving students and respond with deliberate indifference.
Whether the allegations in this case meet that legal standard remains for the federal court to decide.
The lawsuit is pending in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maine before Judge Stacey D. Neumann. The plaintiff has requested a jury trial.
