School reaches settlement of $1.35M in sexual assault case: Belmont-Redwood Shores Elementary School District to pay student who claimed the district was complicit in attack by janitor

Pedro, now 26, said district officials turned a blind eye to her claims in 2001 that janitor Andre Edwards asked her a series of inappropriate and graphic questions and stuck his hands into her underwear, and argued the assault could have been avoided had officials taken action against Edwards when similar, earlier incidents involving district students were reported, according to a lawsuit filed in San Mateo County Superior Court.

Attorney Paul Llewellyn, who represents Pedro, said in a prepared statement he believed the settlement was “a favorable outcome.”

School officials feel it is the best interest of the district to arrive at the settlement, rather than continue a costly and public trial, according to spokesman Tom DeLapp. But he noted the agreement is not an admission of guilt for the district.

“This settlement does not reflect the merits of the allegations,” said DeLapp. “Nor should it be construed to support a contention that the district or its leaders were liable or responsible for any of the allegations.”

He said that if the district continued to pursue a court case, it would have been victorious.

“We believe that had this gone to trial, the factual basis of these allegations would have been proven false,” he said.

Edwards was sentenced in 2013 to nine months in jail plus sex offender treatment, but not registration, stemming from multiple charges of child molestation which resulted in a settlement of pleading no contest to counts of felony false imprisonment and one misdemeanor count of child annoyance.

Edwards, who worked for the district from 1987 until retiring in 2011, allegedly touched the breast and buttocks of a female student, which led to his sentencing. The claims of Pedro were referenced in the case, but it was not prosecuted due to lack of corroboration.

Pedro’s lawsuit alleged, given Edwards’ extensive history of sexual assault allegations, not only should district officials have done more to protect students from the predator lurking the hallways, but administrators actively concealed and denied previous allegations by her, and others.

The suit names San Mateo County Superintendent Anne Campbell, who was the Ralston principal from 1990 through 1997 before transitioning to district superintendent, as which she served until 2003. Former director of business services Jeffrey Keuscher, former assistant principal Daniel Lyttle, former vice principal Lawrence Glendenning and former principal Jayne Ann Chelberg were identified as well.

In her lawsuit, Pedro claims she told Chelberg of her attack, but was met with skepticism and officials showed a reluctance to pursue disciplining Edwards. It was not until Pedro’s mother exhibited a willingness to push for justice that school officials reported the case to Belmont police, according to the lawsuit.

Following Edwards’ indictment in 2013, Pedro filed her lawsuit alleging district officials were negligent and unresponsive to protecting her, and others, from an employee with an extensive history of sexual assault claims levied against him, including a 1991 investigation for inappropriate sexual misconduct with a female Ralston student, groping and kissing a student he coached on the Ralston girls’ basketball team, and sexually harassing multiple female students between 1992 and 1996, among other incidents.

An investigation into claims against Edwards, led by Campbell, found many of the allegations unsubstantiated, according to the lawsuit, but ultimately officials recommended implementing a safety plan which aimed to regulate his interaction with students.

DeLapp defended the way district officials dealt with allegations against Edwards.

“We took the actions that were appropriate at the time, based on the facts that we had at the time,” he said.

The lawsuit contends though that officials opted to protect their longtime employee, despite the extensive amount of allegations pitted against him, rather than a student who was 12 years old when she claimed to have been assaulted.

The inadequate response of district officials, according to the lawsuit, was motivated either by a “collective desire to avoid exposing themselves to liability or was the result of a catastrophic lapse of care.”

As a result of her assault, the lawsuit claims Pedro’s life was derailed, leading to academic failure and teenage pregnancy.

Pedro’s struggles, and the suffering of other students, could have been avoided had officials been more responsive to the allegations against Edwards, contends the lawsuit.

“Had the district exhibited any interest in protecting the children entrusted to their care, Ms. Pedro and untold others would have never been abused,” according to the lawsuit.

According to Llewellyn, Pedro hopes the court action will help save others from facing the same attacks she did.

“Ms. Pedro filed this lawsuit in the hopes that doing so would protect other school children from abuse by raising awareness and encouraging school districts everywhere to do everything they can to keep their schools safe and free from abuse,” he said.

DeLapp though said he believed the settlement should satisfy Pedro as well as the district, and both parties should be prepared to put the case to rest.

“I think both Ms. Pedro and the school district are glad this is over, and that we can move forward,” he said. “That is in the best interest of everybody.”

austin@smdailyjournal.com

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