The Los Angeles Unified School District will pay another $4.5 million to a group of former Miramonte Elementary School students who claimed they were the victims of abuse at the hands of teachers.
The funding, approved this week by the district’s Board of Education, will supplement money the district agreed to pay the former students in 2013 as part of an overall $30 million settlement with about 60 plaintiffs.
“The well-being of the district’s students is a high priority for us,” LAUSD general counsel David Holmquist said. “We are please to have reached a resolution of the government claims in a manner that is sensitive to the welfare of the students and resolves their claims responsibly. We also commend the lawyers for the claimants for their professionalism in protecting the interests of their clients.”
The $4.5 million will increase the amount paid to the bulk of the plaintiffs involved in the 2013 settlement. Combined with a nearly $140 million settlement the district reached last year to resolve another 81 cases, the district has now paid nearly $175 million to resolve litigation stemming from the actions of former teacher Mark Berndt and allegations of abuse by former teacher Martin Singer.
Criminal charges against Singer were dropped last year. Berndt was sentenced in November 2013 to 25 years in prison after pleading no contest to 23 counts of lewd conduct with a child between 2005-10.
The Los Angeles Times reported that the plaintiffs involved in the 2013 settlement sought the additional funds after learning of last year’s $140 million payout — which represented a much higher amount paid per student than the 2013 deal.
According to The Times, the $4.5 million will be paid to 58 plaintiffs — 51 who alleged abuse by Berndt and seven who accused Springer of wrongdoing.
— Wire reports