ENCINITAS, Calif — An Encinitas girl and her mother are suing San Dieguito Union High School District for failing to protect the then-12-year-old from getting sexually assaulted by a school campus supervisor.
In a newly filed lawsuit the girl, known only as Jane Doe, says former school campus supervisor Omar Galeana groomed her and other students and sexually assaulted her on more than one occasion from February through March 2024 on and off campus. In addition to the sexual misconduct, Galeana is accused of supplying middle school children with marijuana while he was an employee.
Galeana faces 12 charges including two counts of aggravated sexual assault of a child, four counts of forcible lewd act upon a child, three counts of furnishing cannabis to a minor under 14, and three counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. Galeana pleaded not guilty and is in custody awaiting trial.
In a non-conformed lawsuit, the complaint alleges San Dieguito Union was already aware of Galeana's "unusual interest" in the middle schooler as well as with other minor children.
Attorney Morgan Stewart represents the girl and her mother. Stewart and his firm, Manly Stewart Finaldi specialize in minor sex assault cases and have handled high-profile cases including representing U.S. Olympian Simone Biles and others in their case against former gymnast doctor Larry Nassar.
Stewart said the lawsuit against San Dieguito Union is yet another egregious example of school administrators ignoring complaints of misconduct against children.
"A school district has a heightened duty towards their students," Stewart told CBS 8. "They operate under a legal term called in loco parentis, meaning they're the caretaker. They're the parents for for lack of a better definition of a child there. So they have to not only hire correctly but not keep somebody on campus who is a danger to students. We know they weren't doing that."
Stewart said the girl and her mother hope to accomplish several things with their lawsuit.
"Their primary goal is the safety of all minors that he may have become involved. We believe he's a serial predator," said Stewart.
Also, Stewart said the girl and her mother want to make sure that the school district owns up to their failures to protect her and others. "Secondarily, they want to hold the school district accountable for their failures. The school district should know that they're going to be ultimately held responsible for what happened to this little girl."
Officials from San Dieguito Union High School District tell CBS 8 that it acted swiftly upon hearing of the allegations.
As for the lawsuit, an official for the district told CBS 8 that it has not yet received it and can not comment on it.
"We have not yet received the lawsuit that you are inquiring about so we can offer no comment other than to confirm that when the allegations were brought to our attention last spring, we took immediate action to remove him from employment and work cooperatively with law enforcement so the facts could be gathered and justice may be served. Working with students of all ages is a profound privilege and our students must be treated with dignity and respect by those entrusted to work with them. Anyone with additional information should contact the San Diego Sheriff’s Department Child Abuse Unit, at 858-285-6222. We continue to hope that justice will be served in this situation."