Parents are accusing Virginia's Loudoun County Schools of "hiding something big" after the district's board elected to withhold an independent report detailing information regarding sexual assault cases of two high school students, citing privacy concerns and attorney-client privilege.
"Being open and transparent is incredibly important, but so is the rights of our students and staff," school board member Ian Serotkin said.
Board member Erika Ogedebe argued that, while transparency is "important," releasing the report would only contribute to and prolong the "trauma of the victims."
She also argued that maintaining the students' privacy takes precedent over releasing the report.
On the contrary, Tiffany Polifko, who ran as a parental rights candidate for the board last November, said the incident is "about justice, integrity and service."
"You can’t have justice without truth," she added.
The district, which landed in hot water for how it previously handled the assaults, came under fire yet again after the board's 6-3 majority voted last Tuesday to keep the report private despite parents demanding the information go public for months.
Board members Atoosa Reeser, Brenda Sheridan, Jeff Morse, Harris Mahedavi, Ian Serotkin and Erika Ogedegbe were the six who voted to withhold the report.
Some members' votes, including Ogedegbe's, came contrary to their previous claims to support a potential release. Ogedegbe, however, urged caution with publishing private information about students in an October interview with Loudoun County's 7News.
Members Denise Corbo, Tiffany Polifko and John Beatty supported the report's release.
"I’m the father of the first sexual assault student," parent Scott Smith said during the meeting, "What are they hiding in there? What are they hiding? They are hiding something big."
Smith, walking out of the meeting, shouted at the board, "F---ing liars! What are you covering up? What?"
He also slammed the district for its failure to keep children safe, urging other parents to keep their children out of the schools and called the board "corrupt."
The controversy stems from an incident in which a male student assaulted a female student in the girls' restroom at one of Loudoun County's high schools.
The same student committed the second offense at another district high school later. He was later found guilty of the crimes in juvenile court and sentenced to supervised probation in a residential treatment facility.
Loudoun County Schools continues in a long trail of scandals, being called out by the parental rights movement for allowing inappropriate materials in area schools, facing criticism over transgender bathroom policies and the sexual assault cover-up that spawned an investigation ordered by state Attorney General Jason Miyares.
Fox News' Tyler O'Neil contributed to this report.
