Boy wins $3,600
in school lawsuitThe child claimed that a vice principal
had taped him to a tree
A federal court jury has awarded a former Pukalani Elementary School student $3,600 out of $500,000 in damages sought because a vice principal taped his head to a tree to discipline him.
The child, then a second-grader at the Maui school and identified only as John Doe, and his mother filed suit in early 2000 claiming that Vice Principal David Keala violated his constitutional rights against unreasonable seizure.
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled a year ago that Keala did not have qualified immunity -- a type of protection afforded certain state officials for official actions -- from federal claims, allowing the student's suit to go to trial.
The jury reached the verdict late Tuesday, finding that Keala had violated the boy's civil rights, and awarded $2,500 in punitive damages and $1,100 for past and future pain and suffering, said Deputy Attorney General Nelson Nabeta, who represented Keala.
But the jury rejected other claims, including assault, battery, false imprisonment and negligent infliction of emotional distress.
Attorneys for the boy, now 14, and his mother could not be reached for comment.
Both the student and his mother testified and presented evidence in the two-week trial that he suffered post-traumatic stress disorder, Nabeta said.
Nabeta said the verdict reflected the jury's finding that 90 percent of the child's pain and suffering had to do with pre-existing conditions, including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and learning disabilities that were untreated. The jury attributed the remaining 10 percent to the head-taping incident.
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is characterized by difficulty sitting still, paying attention or controlling impulsive behavior.
Keala, 67, could not be reached for comment.
At the time of the incident, Keala was retired with 30 years of service with the Department of Education. He had been asked to serve as a temporary vice principal at Pukalani.
The student was one of six referred for detention during lunch in February 1998.
Keala instructed the students to stand facing the wall outside the cafeteria and be quiet.
Four of the students complied and were dismissed. Two of the students, including John Doe, were horsing around and disobeying instructions, Nabeta said.
The two continued to misbehave, so Keala told them to wait by a nearby tree outside the cafeteria, Nabeta said.
Keala left the area to take care of another matter and returned to find the two students climbing the tree.
Keala had a student retrieve three-quarter-inch masking tape and taped one strand around each of the students' heads to the tree for about five minutes.
There was differing testimony at trial as to how long the students were taped to the tree.
Both students sued, but the other settled out of court with Keala contributing to part of the settlement.
The amount of the settlement was not available.