BAKERSFIELD, CA--The parents of a Fruitvale Junior High School student are suing the Fruitvale School District, because they said it didn't keep their daughter safe after she claimed bullies physically and sexually assaulted her for 17 minutes on a school bus.
Rebekah Larkins said her 13-year-old daughter rode the same bus for two years, but the alleged attack on October 22, came out of nowhere and was severe.
"As soon as I got in and saw her, I knew something was wrong, just by the way she looked," said Larkins.
"She had marks on her and her hair was missing."
Larkins's daughter told her four boys pulled her clothes, yanked out clumps of her hair, groped her, and forced her head into another boy's lap.
According to Larkins, she confronted school administrators who told her they had bus security video of the attack.
"I didn't get to see the whole video, I just saw about 5 minutes of it," said Larkins.
"And from what I saw, it wasn't even the worst. It was the least horrific part of the attack."
Larkins said the bus driver never stopped the 17 minute assault.
"From the video what I saw, the kid was standing up. There's no reason why he could not have seen something."
The Fruitvale School District declined to comment on the case, but Larkins said school officials promised three boys would face severe discipline, a fourth boy would be suspended and lose bus privileges, riders would be separated by gender, and the driver wouldn't care for children again.
Larkins said it was her daughter's decision to return to school, but once the bell let out and her daughter got back on the bus, she said once again, she no longer felt safe.
"The bully who attacked her was back on that bus," said Larkins.
The school bus driver may still be driving children.
"We're told, we haven't verified it, that he was just assigned to a different route," said Larkins's attorney Daniel Rodriguez.
Larkins's daughter is no longer attending Fruitvale Junior High School, and her family said a lawsuit is the only way to force the school to address bullying.
The Kern County Sheriff's Department is investigating the case.
Rebekah Larkins said her 13-year-old daughter rode the same bus for two years, but the alleged attack on October 22, came out of nowhere and was severe.
"As soon as I got in and saw her, I knew something was wrong, just by the way she looked," said Larkins.
"She had marks on her and her hair was missing."
Larkins's daughter told her four boys pulled her clothes, yanked out clumps of her hair, groped her, and forced her head into another boy's lap.
According to Larkins, she confronted school administrators who told her they had bus security video of the attack.
"I didn't get to see the whole video, I just saw about 5 minutes of it," said Larkins.
"And from what I saw, it wasn't even the worst. It was the least horrific part of the attack."
Larkins said the bus driver never stopped the 17 minute assault.
"From the video what I saw, the kid was standing up. There's no reason why he could not have seen something."
The Fruitvale School District declined to comment on the case, but Larkins said school officials promised three boys would face severe discipline, a fourth boy would be suspended and lose bus privileges, riders would be separated by gender, and the driver wouldn't care for children again.
Larkins said it was her daughter's decision to return to school, but once the bell let out and her daughter got back on the bus, she said once again, she no longer felt safe.
"The bully who attacked her was back on that bus," said Larkins.
The school bus driver may still be driving children.
"We're told, we haven't verified it, that he was just assigned to a different route," said Larkins's attorney Daniel Rodriguez.
Larkins's daughter is no longer attending Fruitvale Junior High School, and her family said a lawsuit is the only way to force the school to address bullying.
The Kern County Sheriff's Department is investigating the case.