DETROIT – A lawsuit filed against a Detroit charter school alleges that staff members made a 14-year-old girl strip down to her underwear after she was accused of having a vape pen.
The 14-year-old girl is an eighth grade student at George Crockett Academy in Detroit. According to the lawsuit, another eighth grade student told school staff that she had a vape pen in her underwear. There is a known history of bullying involving the two girls.
On March 24, the 14-year-old girl’s mother wrote a letter to the school detailing concerns about her daughter’s safety and mental well-being because of bullying.
On March 27, the 14-year-old girl and the other girl got into an altercation, and both were suspended. The 14-year-old girl was suspended for three days and the other girl was suspended for five days.
14-year-old girl strip searched in counselor’s office
The two girls argued on April 25, the day of the strip search, according to the lawsuit. After the argument, the 14-year-old girl was removed from the classroom and that’s when the other girl told staff members that the 14-year-old girl had a vape pen.
Staff searched the 14-year-old girl’s locker, backpack, pockets, and the classroom she was in, and found no evidence of a vape pen. The lawsuit alleges that school leader Thomas Goodley authorized the school’s counselor, Lakeisha Johnson, and the school’s instructional coach, Shawn Shwartz, to strip search the 14-year-old girl in Johnson’s office.
The office has two windows and only one was covered by paper, according to the lawsuit. Nobody at the school called the 14-year-old girl’s mother to ask for consent or inform her that a strip search was going to be conducted.
The 14-year-old girl was told to remove her shirt and pants. She then had to lift up her bra and fold down the top of her underwear to show that she did not have a vape pen, according to the lawsuit.
The 14-year-old girl was also questioned about what was in her underwear after Johnson said she believed she saw something. The 14-year-old girl said it was a pad and she was on her period, according to the lawsuit. She was told she would not have to remove her underwear further.
According to the lawsuit, Goodley was waiting outside the office. Johnson and Schwartz told him they did not find a vape pen on her. The 14-year-old girl was not disciplined and was told to return to class. The girl who accused her of having a vape pen was also not disciplined, according to the lawsuit.
School leader denies strip search happened, then says it was voluntary
“When (the mother) picked up (the 14-year-old girl) from school, she was visibly distraught and explained to her mother that the teachers and/or school administration believed she had a vape pen and that she was strip searched. She explained to her mother that she did not have a vape pen and that a vape pen was not found in the classroom where she was sitting, in her locker, in her backpack, in her pockets or on her person whatsoever,” the lawsuit states.
The 14-year-old girl’s mother called the school and asked to speak with Goodley. She was told he was outside and could not speak with her, according to the lawsuit. Her mother then went to the Detroit Police Department to file a police report with her daughter.
At 8 p.m. on April 25, her mother received a call from Goodley who first denied the strip search happened, and then said that the 14-year-old girl had voluntarily removed all of her clothing to prove her innocence, according to the lawsuit. The 14-year-old girl said the strip search was not voluntary.
“(The 14-year-old girl) is fearful to return to school and no longer wishes to participate in the school’s upcoming eighth grade graduation or dance because of her fear, embarrassment, and humiliation,” the lawsuit states.
The lawsuit was filed against George Crockett Academy, Thomas Goodley, Lakeisha Johnson, and Shawn Schwartz. It alleges that the school and its employees violated the girl’s Fourth Amendment rights.
Michigan’s Sexual Assault Hotline is free, anonymous and available 24/7 by calling 1-855-864-2374 or texting 1-866-238-1454.