Spencer Lucas and Michael Pfau of Pfau Cochran Vertetis Amala PLLC secured a $6,000,000 settlement for a woman who was kidnapped and sexually abused by her teacher while attending a Palm Springs Unified School District school in the 1990s.
Defendant Mark Elliott Raisler used his position as a teacher to groom, manipulate, and sexually abuse the Plaintiff from approximately 1994 to 1997, including while she was participating in school-sponsored activities. Despite the district’s knowledge of complaints made to school administrators about an inappropriate “relationship” between Raisler and Plaintiff, Raisler was permitted to chaperone Plaintiff and another student on an overnight school trip to Stockton, California where he was arrested by law enforcement while sexually assaulting Plaintiff and was later criminally charged.
Although a protection order was in place, Raisler later kidnapped Plaintiff and drove her across the country for two weeks during which time the sexual abuse continued. After expert depositions were taken and the case prepared for trial, the parties agreed to settle the case.