Virginia’s most prominent Democrat Party leaders aren’t talking after the nationwide scandal involving the Loudoun County School District exploded earlier this week.
The Daily Wire reported earlier this week that Scott Smith, the man who was arrested for protesting transgender bathroom policies at a June 22 Loudoun County School Board (LCSB) meeting, has a ninth-grade daughter who was allegedly raped in school bathroom less than one month prior. The girl was allegedly raped by a transgender girl – a biological male – in a school bathroom at Stone Bridge High School.
That incident reportedly occurred on May 28, a few weeks prior to the LCSB meeting where Smith was arrested for “unlawful assembly.”
But at the June 22 meeting, Loudoun County Superintendent Scott Zeigler defended the county’s transgender bathroom policy by saying “the predator transgender student or person simply does not exist,” and that, “We don’t have any record of assaults occurring in our restrooms.”
When asked to provide an update Wednesday, Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS) told The Virginia Star that is was unaware of the alleged rape until the story made national headlines this week, but that it has been fully cooperating with law enforcement who confirmed to Fox News that it has been investigating the incident for two months.
Here is the full statement:
Loudoun County Public Schools is aware of the media and social media reports concerning alleged sexual assaults at two of our high school campuses. While LCPS takes student privacy seriously and cannot reveal details concerning the actions of any specific student, we do want to clarify our investigative process. Principals are legally required to report to the local law enforcement agency any act, including sexual assault, that may constitute a felony offense under Va. Code § 22.1-279.3:1. That process was followed with respect to these allegations. Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office was contacted within minutes of receiving the initial report on May 28. Once a matter has been reported to law enforcement, LCPS does not begin its investigation until law enforcement advises LCPS that it has completed the criminal investigation. To maintain the integrity of the criminal investigation, law enforcement requested that LCPS not interview students until their investigation is concluded. LCPS has cooperated and continues to cooperate with law enforcement.
Furthermore, LCPS is prohibited from disciplining any student without following the Title IX grievance process, which includes investigating complaints of sexual harassment and sexual assault. LCPS does impose interim measures to protect the safety of students involved in the original incident, deter retaliation, and preserve the integrity of the investigation and resolution process. LCPS has complied and continues to comply with its obligations under Title IX.
School Board members are typically not given details of disciplinary matters. The board may be obligated to consider long-term suspensions or expulsions and must ensure that students have not been deprived of due process. Consequently, members of the Loudoun County School Board were not aware of the specific details of this incident until it was reported in media outlets earlier this week. We are unable to locate any records that indicate that Scott Smith had registered in advance to speak at the June 22, 2021 board meeting.
The Star asked Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) what he thought of the allegations during an impromptu interview at Reagan International Airport Wednesday.
“I’ve heard nothing about it,” Warner said.
He dodged further questions by saying, “I think it’s really important, especially when you’re talking about a crime – get the facts first,” and then, “I don’t normally comment on open cases.”
The Star contacted Warner’s office again for a comment Thursday. That request went unreturned.
So did requests to the offices of Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA), Gov. Ralph Northam (D-VA), and Democrat gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe.
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Pete D’Abrosca is a contributor at The Virginia Star and The Star News Network. Follow Pete on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Stone Bridge High School” by Vahurzpu. CC BY-SA 4.0.
