Dean impregnated high school student twice — then coerced abortion, Chicago lawsuit says

Charlotte Observer - 4/11/2024

A former high school dean is accused of impregnating a high school student twice, then forcing her to have two abortions, a Chicago lawsuit says.

The student “lived in constant fear” during her high school years between 2013 to 2016, and felt she couldn’t tell teachers about the abuse, receiving no help after informing one instructor, according to the lawsuit.

Now an adult, she’s now suing former Dean of Little Village Lawndale High School Brian Crowder and Chicago Public Schools (CPS) for $50,000 in damages as a result of the years of sexual abuse, the lawsuit says.

CPS did not immediately respond to McClatchy News’ request for comment.

In a statement to WGN, a CPS spokesperson said, “Chicago Public Schools (CPS), prioritizes the safety and well-being of our students. We take seriously our responsibility to ensure all employees act in the best interest of our students. The District does not comment on pending investigations or litigation. Our CPS team follows District policies and procedures as we respond to issues.”

CPS also told WGN that Crowder was removed from his position in 2021.

Years of abuse

Crowder, while dean of the school, is accused of asking the student to friend him on Snapchat, even confronting her when she did not initially accept his request. He began grooming her over the social media platform, sending her inappropriate images and sexually explicit messages, according to court documents.

The explicit messages escalated to “dates,” according to the lawsuit. At times, teachers at the school witnessed the student in Crowder’s car driving to his home, the lawsuit said.

During the student’s sophomore year, Crowder started to sexually abuse her, according to the lawsuit.

The teen got pregnant as a result of the sexual abuse when she was 15 years old, according to court documents. Crowder then told the pregnant student they could “have children together when she is an adult” if she had an abortion, the lawsuit says.

At the time, Illinois law required a parent’s consent for a minor to have an abortion, according to the lawsuit.

Crowder took her to get the abortion, telling clinic staff he was the teen’s stepparent and signing the necessary consent forms under a fake name, according to a news release from Stinar Gould Grieco & Hensley, PLLC, the law firm representing the former student.

She later got pregnant again, and Crowder repeated the same process, promising they could have children together when she was an adult, according to court documents.

He also is accused of forcing the student to terminate the second pregnancy.

Crowder continued to sexually abuse the student for the remainder of her high school years, according to the lawsuit, and would often send her messages through Snapchat while she was in class.

As a result of the continued abuse, the student’s grades suffered and teachers became frustrated with her inability to “focus in class,” according to court documents.

Did her teachers know?

Crowder handled discipline of teachers and students at the school. Because of his authoritative position, she “did not feel that she could tell anyone about what had happened,” according to court documents.

However, the student confided in her chemistry teacher at one point, according to the lawsuit.

The teacher said it was “ultimately (the student’s) decision whether to report it to someone else or not,” according to the lawsuit.

The student never reported the abuse to another teacher, and the chemistry teacher did not report the abuse to authorities, according to the lawsuit. Instead, the teacher would periodically check in with the student about the “relationship,” according to court documents.

All teachers and staff at the school are mandatory reporters, which requires them to report any suspected abuse or neglect of children, according to the Illinois Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act.

Additionally, teachers and staff at the school would “joke” about the amount of time the student and Crowder spent together in his office, according to the lawsuit. They also joked about “romantic interest” between the two, documents say.

History of abuse

Beyond Crowder, several teachers and administrators were accused of abusing students, according to the lawsuit.

Around 2014 or 2015, one administrator was accused of harassing students at the school and grooming at least 16 students, according to the lawsuit.

The Chicago Tribune reported police investigated 523 reports of sexual abuse that occurred inside CPS across the city between 2008 to 2017. Following the newspaper’s “Betrayed” investigation, CPS transferred sexual abuse investigation responsibility to the Illinois Office of the Inspector General, according to the lawsuit.

Crowder was charged with felony criminal sexual assault in 2022, according to ABC7.

If you have experienced sexual assault and need someone to talk to, call the National Sexual Assault Hotline for support at 1-800-656-4673 or visit the hotline's online chatroom.

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