Another 5-year-old CMS student reports sexual assault

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (WBTV) - For the second time in a month, a five-year-old student enrolled at a Mecklenburg County school has reported being sexually assaulted by a classmate.

The mother of the student reached out to WBTV after seeing the story of another five-year-old girl who reported being assaulted.

In this most recent case, the child’s mother said school administrators failed to take immediate action in response to the allegations, including alerting district staff.

The incident happened February 23rd – and reported the same day. The girl’s mother said she got a call from the assistant principal of the school saying a boy looked up her daughter’s skirt and touched her while they waited for the school bus.

WBTV is not identifying the girl or her mother to protect their identity, since they reported a sexual assault.

The alleged assault is just one of the mother’s concerns --- the lack of immediate action from the school system, she said, is also disconcerting.

She said initially administrators didn’t call the police, didn’t file a Title IX report and didn’t offer any supportive measures.

» Related: ‘I just want to be believed’: Former Myers Park HS student testifies about alleged sexual assault

“My daughter comes home every day and she’s still not comfortable, she’s still not comfortable,” the mother said.

In almost the same fashion as the initial incident reported by WBTV, the alleged victim still has to see the student she said attacked her.

In fact, the girl still sits just feet from him.

“Today he sits two seats behind them, my daughter told me they still crossed paths,” the mother said.

More questions, few answers

After learning of the incident WBTV called administrators at CMS for answers.

That same day administrators from Grier Academy reached out to the mother for a meeting.

Only then did she see any plans on paper showing the steps the school would take to make the little girl feel comfortable at school. The plan includes counseling but, to the dismay of the mother, one of her biggest concerns isn’t getting addressed.

According to the Title IX documents the two students will be in assigned seats on the bus to “prevent interaction and support bus driver supervision.”

» Related: Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools official details start of Title IX reform as trial looms

But for the mother of a child who says she was assaulted, that’s not good enough.

“That’s all I want. What’s so hard to take this boy off the bus?” the mother asked.

Despite claims by Interim Superintendent Dr. Crystal Hill that the district has improved its handling of reported sexual violence, when pressed by a WBTV reporter about the cast of the first five-year-old student’s reported sexual assault, she walked out in the middle of an interview.

“I’m willing to answer your questions, but you don’t, you don’t. You don’t, you? You know you asked the same question 50 times,’ Hill said during that interview.

But Hill isn’t the only one caught facing questions she doesn’t want to answer, the mother of the five-year-old is now having to explain things to her child that most people can’t imagine.

“I never. I never had to that talk with my daughter. She’s five years old. She’s not exposed to things like that,” she said.

So, what does CMS have to say about the most recent case?

Nothing.

A district spokesman said the district didn’t have a comment and didn’t respond to a follow-up email.

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