LAS VEGAS — Tonight, the Clark County School District Board of School Trustees approved a $1 million settlement with two teenage students represented by the American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada.
The teens were attacked by CCSD police in February 2023 near Durango High School. Cellphone video of the incident has been shared widely throughout the community — including before the Nevada Legislature — but despite persistent requests from the news media, community advocates, and even the ACLUNV attorneys representing the families, the school district stonewalled the release of numerous public records related to the incident.
In Dec. 2023, ACLU of Nevada secured a court order to force the district to release bodycam footage from the incident and email records. An appeal related to other records from the district’s investigation of the incident is before the Nevada Supreme Court.
Thursday’s settlement avoids an additional civil rights case being brought on behalf of the students.
ACLU of Nevada Legal Director Chris Peterson said:
“CCSD has spent the last two years working to avoid accountability for attacking our clients. The district hoped if it could bury the records and tie our innocent clients to a criminal narrative, that this incident would just go away. We’ve spent nearly two years seeking justice for our clients, their families, and the wider community, and we hope tonight’s settlement will help our clients and their families on their way to healing and peace. CCSD’s actions throughout this matter raise serious transparency and accountability questions.”
ACLU of Nevada Executive Director Athar Haseebullah said:
“From the inception of this matter, we have sounded the alarm about CCSD’s antics here. Two years and dozens of motions and hearings later, we’ve firmly established that CCSD’s original narrative in this matter was a bold-faced lie and that its attempt to hide records was done intentionally to hide the egregious misconduct of its own police department from the public. If CCSD continues to engage in misconduct, we will continue to sue them. We want to thank our friends at Claggett and Sykes for their support in helping secure this outcome.”
News Media Availability
The families will not be available for media interviews, and ACLUNV thanks you in advance for respecting their privacy. The organization’s attorneys and leaders will be available for interviews Friday morning — contact the communications team to make arrangements.
