WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, America First Legal (AFL) filed a lawsuit on behalf of The Daily Wire against the Loudoun County School Board to enforce the Virginia Freedom of Information Act and obtain lawfully requested documents.
The Daily Wire, and specifically the investigative reporting of Luke Rosiak, has been the leading source of information on the cover-ups of sexual assaults in Loudoun County schools. As a part of his investigation, Mr. Rosiak is investigating how much money northern Virginia schools have spent to cover up allegations of misconduct through lawsuit settlement agreements to prevent more allegations from becoming public.
In October, Mr. Rosiak filed a Virginia FOIA request with Loudoun County to obtain copies of settlement agreements for a six-month time period in 2023. Instead of handing over the requested documents as required under Virginia law, Loudoun County refused; at first saying it was too burdensome and then changing the reasoning, saying it would violate student privacy and were shielded by legal privileges. Mr. Rosiak, working in good faith, filed a second request to try to accommodate the stated justifications from the school.
After more than a month of delay, it became clear that Loudoun County schools are continuing to cover up their cover-ups and will not release what should be publicly available information without intervention.
AFL is proud to partner with The Daily Wire to help enforce open-government laws and hold schools accountable. Parents deserve to know if their children are safe at school, and this lawsuit will help them obtain information to make that decision.
Statement from Ian Prior, America First Legal Senior Advisor:
“Over a year ago, a special grand jury in Loudoun County explicitly stated that Loudoun County Public Schools relies on overbroad application of laws to ‘impede transparency, accountability, and openness.’ Yet, even after a Loudoun County Circuit Court forced LCPS to turn over an independent report into the 2021 sexual assaults that it had withheld from the public and even after LCPS’s former superintendent was criminally indicted and convicted as a result of the special grand jury investigation, LCPS continues to stonewall the public when it comes to legitimate requests for how taxpayer money is being used. It is clear that it’s the same old, same old at LCPS, even with new leadership in place, and that it will be up to the public and intrepid media outlets like the Daily Wire to hold accountable this $1.6 billion, taxpayer-funded institution. “ said Ian Prior.
Read the lawsuit here.
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