MCPS concludes investigation into Damascus High School locker room rape case

ROCKVILLE, Md. (FOX 5 DC) - More than six months after a locker room rape scandal stunned Damascus High School, the Montgomery County public school district released the findings of their internal investigation Tuesday.

It all started last Halloween when JV football players were accused of raping one teammate with a broomstick and attempting to rape others. Four of those students were charged as adults, until eventually their cases were kicked back down to juvenile court.

Then, just last week the school's principal resigned. Now, the athletic director is out and the JV football staff is being replaced.

On Tuesday evening, Montgomery County Public Schools superintendent Jack Smith held a press conference to announce the findings from the investigation and to take questions.
The county says that when the incident occurred, there was a 25-minute gap during which the boys locker room at Damascus was unsupervised. That is a violation of MCPS protocol.

The investigation did find, however, "that there is insufficient evidence at this time to suggest undue delay in reporting the incident." That's been a very big concern for parents, some of whom tell FOX 5 they disagree with this finding.

MCPS also says "appropriate disciplinary action has been taken."

Right now, there is a new principal at Damascus and a search is underway for a new athletic director and JV football staff. The football program is now under what's called "probationary oversight," and finally, a law firm has been brought in to conduct an external investigation.

The internal investigation only looked into what is alleged to have occurred on October 31, 2018. It did not look into whether there's been a pattern of this type of behavior at Damascus High previously, as several students have alleged and as the state's attorney's office is currently investigating.