Doe v. Baylor Univ.
Doe v. Baylor Univ.
Opinion of the Court
*789Plaintiff Jane Doe ("Plaintiff"), a former student at Baylor University who alleges that she was sexually assaulted during her freshman year, brings this suit against Defendant Baylor University ("Defendant" or "Baylor"). (Compl., Dkt. 1, ¶¶ 1-2, 6-7). Plaintiff seeks to hold Baylor liable under Title IX of the Education Amendments Act of 1972 ("Title IX"), which provides that "[n]o person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance."
I. STANDARD OF REVIEW
Pursuant to Rule 12(b)(6), a court may dismiss a complaint for "failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted." Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(6). "To survive a Rule 12(b)(6) motion to dismiss, a complaint 'does not need detailed factual allegations,' but must provide the [plaintiff's] grounds for entitlement to relief-including factual allegations that when assumed to be true 'raise a right to relief above the speculative level.' " Cuvillier v. Taylor ,
II. FACTUAL BACKGROUND
Plaintiff enrolled at Baylor, where she was a member of the women's volleyball team, in the fall of 2011. (Compl., Dkt. 1, ¶ 6). She alleges that she was gang-raped at an off-campus location by between four and eight Baylor football players on February 11, 2012. (Id. ¶¶ 7, 51, 74, 78).
Plaintiff alleges that her mother met with an assistant football coach in July 2012; her mother reportedly "did not reveal her daughter's name" but "did provide the coach with a list of the players who were involved in Plaintiff's sexual assault." (Id. ¶¶ 51, 83). That coach subsequently spoke to two of the involved players and to other Baylor football coaches, but allegedly took no further action. (Id. ¶ 84).
After Baylor football players burglarized her apartment, Plaintiff alleges, she met *790with Art Briles-then Baylor's head football coach-to report the incident and the names of the players involved. (Id. ¶ 51). She and her parents also allegedly met with two members of the volleyball coaching staff, informing them of the sexual assault and identifying the relevant players. (Id. ). The head volleyball coach reportedly informed Briles and Baylor Athletic Director Ian McCaw of the same information. (Id. ¶ 98). Plaintiff left Baylor after the spring 2013 semester, (id. ¶ 6), but reported her assault to an individual identified as "Baylor's [f]ootball [c]haplain" in the fall of 2013, (id. ¶ 51).
Plaintiff alleges that she was "repeatedly subjected to verbal abuse and public humiliation" by Baylor football players following her assault. (Id. ¶ 80; see also id. ¶ 51). Specifically, she claims the football players "harassed both Plaintiff and her family members via text message" and harassed Plaintiff verbally both on-and off-campus. (Id. ¶ 85). Plaintiff avers that she "was forced to face her assailants" both in the classroom and during volleyball practice and training sessions. (Id. ¶¶ 86-88).
III. POST-REPORTING CLAIMS
Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in all federally-funded educational programs.
No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.
Title IX is enforceable through an individual's private right of action and allows for the recovery of damages. Davis Next Friend LaShonda D. v. Monroe Cty. Bd. of Educ. ,
Title IX claims are commonly asserted in response to a student's sexual harassment or assault. The Supreme Court has held that sexual harassment within a school or school program is a form of sex discrimination when the harassment is so severe, pervasive, and objectively offensive that it deprives the victim of educational opportunities or benefits provided by the school. Davis ,
In the instant case, Plaintiff alleges multiple types of Title IX claims. Baylor's Motion to Dismiss, however, addresses only those claims that are "based on Baylor's alleged failure to assist Plaintiff after the alleged assault." (Mot. Dismiss, Dkt. 9, at 6). Baylor asserts that these claims are time-barred.
A. Legal Standards
"A motion to dismiss may be granted on a statute of limitations defense where it is evident from the pleadings that the action is time-barred, and the pleadings fail to raise some basis for tolling." Taylor v. Bailey Tool Mfg. Co. ,
"Absent tolling, the limitations period runs from the moment a plaintiff's claim 'accrues,' " and while the limitations period is borrowed from state law, "the particular accrual date of a federal cause of action is a matter of federal law." King-White ,
*792Regardless of when a claim accrues, the statute of limitations may be tolled in certain cases. The doctrine of equitable estoppel, for example, tolls the statute of limitations when a defendant conceals material facts from a party without knowledge of those facts. Johnson & Higgins of Tex., Inc. v. Kenneco Energy, Inc. ,
B. Discussion
Plaintiff asserts that her post-reporting claims did not accrue until Pepper Hamilton's recommendations and findings of fact were released in May 2016. (Compl., Dkt. 1, ¶¶ 137-39). Baylor argues that Plaintiff's alleged claims accrued well before that date. (Mot. Dismiss, Dkt. 9, at 10-12).
Having reviewed the parties' filings and relevant law, the Court concludes that Plaintiff's claims accrued, at the latest, in May 2013. Plaintiff knew of her alleged post-reporting injuries, including her continuing subjection to harassment, in 2012 and 2013. She also knew that Baylor had failed to intervene. Further, because she notified Baylor of her assault, Plaintiff knew the university had actual knowledge of her assault and her continued exposure to a hostile environment. See King-White ,
Plaintiff argues that, even if her post-reporting claims had accrued by 2013, they should be tolled. Making reference to the doctrines of fraudulent concealment and equitable tolling, she asserts that her post-reporting claims are "based on Baylor's affirmative involvement in manipulating and misinforming Plaintiff of her rights or lack thereof, discouraging Plaintiff from taking further action with respect to the sexual assault, and concealing Baylor football players' and school officials' misconduct with respect to Plaintiff's sexual assault." (Compl., Dkt. 1, ¶¶ 137-39). According to Plaintiff, she therefore could not have known of her injuries prior to the release of the Pepper Hamilton materials discussed above. (Id. ¶¶ 137-42).
Fraudulent concealment is based on the doctrine of equitable estoppel, and Plaintiff uses the same alleged facts in support of both arguments. The Court will therefore consider the application of equitable estoppel and fraudulent concealment together. See B. Mahler Interests, L.P. v. DMAC Constr., Inc. ,
*793Plaintiff alleges that Baylor "manipulate[ed] and misinform[ed] Plaintiff of her rights or lack thereof." (Compl., Dkt. 1, ¶ 137). Even accepting this as true, whether Baylor misinformed Plaintiff of her rights is not the question. Equitable estoppel and fraudulent concealment required the false representation or concealment of material facts. Schroeder ,
IV. CLAIM FOR INJUNCTIVE RELIEF
As noted above, Plaintiff seeks a permanent injunction ordering Baylor to (1) "refrain from unlawful discrimination and/or retaliation"; (2) "undertake and rectify any and all Title IX violations and/or inequities"; (3) "refrain from creating and condoning a hostile sexual harassment and/or discriminati[ng] environment against individuals on the basis of sex by immediately ceasing deliberate indifference to sexual assaults"; and (4) "cease interference with the disciplinary process in favor of students who were charged with sexual assault." (Compl., Dkt. 1, ¶ 145). Baylor argues that Plaintiff, who is no longer a student at Baylor, lacks standing to bring a claim for injunctive relief. (Mot. Dismiss, Dkt. 9, at 16). Plaintiff, despite filing a response to Baylor's Motion to Dismiss, did not refute Baylor's arguments regarding her claim for injunctive relief. (See generally Resp., Dkt. 13). With respect to Plaintiff's claim for injunctive relief, Defendant's Motion to Dismiss is therefore GRANTED .
V. LEAVE TO AMEND
Plaintiff, in cursory fashion, argues that she should be entitled to amend her complaint. (Resp., Dkt. 13, at 15). The Court disagrees. As Plaintiff notes, there is a strong presumption in favor of allowing amendment rather than dismissal, and "[l]eave to amend should be freely granted when justice requires." Fin. Acquisition Partners, L.P. v. Blackwell ,
VI. CONCLUSION
Defendant's Partial Motion to Dismiss, (Dkt. 9), is GRANTED . Any post-reporting claims specific to Plaintiff are DISMISSED . Plaintiff's claim for injunctive relief is also DISMISSED .
Baylor also seeks dismissal of Plaintiff's claim for injunctive relief, as discussed infra Section IV.
Plaintiff asserts that a five-year statute of limitations applies to her claims. (Resp., Dkt. 13, at 8). This Court has rejected the same argument in analogous cases. See, e.g. , Doe 1 v. Baylor Univ. ,
Plaintiff has also not alleged any representations by Baylor that induced her to not pursue her legal claims. (See, e.g. , Compl., Dkt. 1, ¶¶ 107-08 (alleging that Baylor enlisted individuals to convince Plaintiff not to speak to the media) ).
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Jane DOE v. BAYLOR UNIVERSITY
- Cited By
- 6 cases
- Status
- Published