The Clark County School District Board of School Trustees has approved a $1 million settlement with two teenage students, as announced by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Nevada. The incident in question involved an attack by CCSD police on the students near Durango High School in February 2023. A widely circulated cellphone video captured the event, prompting public interest and calls for transparency.
Despite requests from various parties, including media outlets and community advocates, the school district initially resisted releasing records related to the incident. In December 2023, the ACLU of Nevada secured a court order compelling the release of bodycam footage and email records. An appeal concerning other records from the district’s investigation is still pending before the Nevada Supreme Court.
The settlement reached aims to prevent further civil rights litigation on behalf of the students. Chris Peterson, Legal Director for ACLU of Nevada, stated: “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.” He added that they hope this resolution aids in healing for their clients and families while highlighting concerns over CCSD’s transparency.
Athar Haseebullah, Executive Director of ACLU of Nevada, commented: “From the inception of this matter, we have sounded the alarm about CCSD’s antics here… we’ve firmly established that CCSD’s original narrative in this matter was a bold-faced lie.” He emphasized continued legal action against any future misconduct by CCSD.
While family members are not available for interviews at this time due to privacy concerns, attorneys and leaders from ACLUNV will be open for discussions on Friday morning upon contacting their communications team.
