A sexual abuse lawsuit was filed late yesterday against Castilleja School, a private middle school and high school in Palo Alto, alleging that three young students were sexually abused by a school tutor in 2007-2016.
The former tutor, Mark Hodes, was arrested in 2020 and is awaiting trial in Santa Clara County.
In August 2020, Hodes, now 79, was arrested on a warrant for nine felony counts of lewd acts with a minor aged 14 or 15. Since then, he has been charged with 55 counts of lewd and lascivious acts with children, and a total of 17 girls have come forward to share their experiences.
The lawsuit claims that the school knew of the tutor's prior sexual misconduct with students, and continued to give him unsupervised access to the campus. Lawyers for the former students, with the law firms of Cerri, Boskovich & Allard along with Mary Alexander & Associates, believe there are more than a dozen victims in this case.
The lawsuit alleges that the private girls’ school concealed Hode’s predatory
behavior from the public and the school community, and chose to cover up complaints about his alleged sexual misconduct with minor students.
The lawsuit accuses the school of negligent supervision, negligent misrepresentation, and inadequate training, stating that “the school failed to properly investigate or report prior complaints about the inappropriate behavior” of Hodes.
The complaint states that Castilleja School was aware of Hodes' inappropriate behavior as early as 1992-1993 and “was on notice that Hodes engaged in highly inappropriate grooming behavior with minor female students, which created a risk he would sexually assault one of them.”
The lawsuit adds that at least one Castilleja employee continued to recommend Hodes as a tutor, allowed him to freely access campus unsupervised even though he was not an employee, and chose not to take any further actions to deter his abuse of students.
The victims were not named, identified only as Jane Does 1, 2 and 3.
Jane Doe 1 claims she was abused during the 2012-2013 school year while a middle school student during tutoring sessions.
Jane Doe 2 claims she was abused both on campus and at Hodes' home from 2012-2016 while a high school student at Castilleja.
Jane Doe 3 alleges she was sexually assaulted from 2007-2011 while a high school student at Castilleja.
“The abuse of these students was entirely preventable had the school placed the safety of its students above the reputation of its school,” the lawyer said in the legal complaint.
“This lawsuit highlights the critical importance of rigorous oversight and prompt action in educational institutions to protect vulnerable students,” the lawyers said. “It underscores the need for schools to thoroughly investigate and report any suspicions of inappropriate behavior, prioritizing student safety above all else.”
