DCPS reaches settlement with victim of former Douglas Anderson teacher, enacts new safety plan

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A former Douglas Anderson student has reached a settlement with Duval County Public Schools after filing a lawsuit in which she claimed to have been sexually harassed by former DA teacher Jeffrey Clayton.

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The former student named in the lawsuit claimed Clayton made inappropriate comments to her, stared at her breasts and even inappropriately touched her when she was a freshman at the school in 2019.

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The accusations are similar to those in a criminal complaint filed against Clayton last year, which resulted in his conviction earlier this month.

Clayton, who taught at Douglas Anderson for 22 years, was sentenced to ten years in prison for sexual misconduct with a minor,.

“That’s not unusual for there to be a criminal case, which is successfully prosecuted by the state and then there are a number of civil cases which follow that by the purported victims of this,” said Action News Jax Law and Safety Expert Dale Carson.

RELATED: ‘A long time coming:’ Former students react to sentencing of former DA teacher Jeffrey Clayton

The suit initially sought damages in excess of $75,000.

Carson explained, in civil settlements with government entities like these, awards are capped at $200,000, but there are ways to exceed those amounts.

“There has to be a bill presented. The bill has to be voted on by the state legislature and the state legislature is basically agreeing to pay higher than the current limits,” said Carson.

The settlement itself doesn’t specify how much was awarded to the former student.

DCPS declined to comment on the settlement, stating only, “This situation is pending School Board action”.

The board is set to consider the settlement on July 2nd.

RELATED: Former DA teacher Jeffrey Clayton sentenced to 10 years in prison for sexual misconduct with student

Carson argued it possible more civil suits could be brought against the district tied to Clayton, given his lengthy career at DA, but Carson noted victims of sexual harassment oftentimes never come forward.

“There may be individuals who simply want to forget what happened and don’t want to go over it again in order to receive a monetary settlement from anyone,” said Carson.

DCPS released the following plan what they said are, “lessons learned from the investigation, allegations, and other actions surrounding certain teachers from Douglas Anderson School of the Arts.”

Action News Jax did reach out to the former student named in the suit and her attorney for comment on this story, but did not hear back.

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