A Virginia juvenile court judge ruled Monday that the teenager charged with raping a female student in a Loudoun County high school bathroom in May did engage in “non-consensual sex,” according to people connected with the case.
Lawyer Bill Stanley said parents Jessica and Scott Smith “are relieved that justice was served” for their daughter. The attack occurred May 28 at Stone Bridge High School.
The teenage boy who appeared in court on Monday is also charged in a separate assault incident in a classroom at Broad Run High School, also in the Loudoun County school district. The 15-year-old, who reportedly identifies as “gender fluid,” is alleged to have assaulted Scott Smith’s daughter in a girl’s bathroom while wearing a skirt.
He is to be sentenced later, according to lawyers in the case.
After the attack on his daughter, Mr. Smith was arrested at a Loudoun County school board meeting on June 22, an incident that became a partial justification for the National School Boards Association to ask the Biden administration for federal help to stop stormy public meetings from turning into “domestic terrorism.” Attorney General Merrick Garland quickly announced that the FBI would help to investigate threats of violence against school officials nationwide.
At a House hearing last week, Mr. Garland testified that he didn’t know anything about the sexual assault case at Stone Bridge high school.
Mr. Stanley said the incident at Stone Bridge “has deeply affected the Smith family.” He called the girl “a survivor and a fighter, and we are confident that she will grow even stronger with each passing day.”
“The Smith family wants to thank all of those in the community who have demonstrated their love and support over the past few months,” Mr. Stanley said in a statement. “The Smith family stands stronger than ever in moving forward to ensure that those responsible in the Loudoun County school system are held accountable, so that this may never happen again to anyone else’s child.”
The NSBA late last week apologized for writing its letter to President Biden, saying it was a mistake.
“There was no justification for some of the language included in the letter,” the NSBA’s board of directors told state affiliates. “We should have had a better process in place to allow for consultation on a communication of this significance. We apologize also for the strain and stress this situation has caused you and your organizations.”
