Were You Abused by Jeremy Yeh at El Crystal or Allen Elementary School, in San Bruno, California?

Attorneys representing several Jane Does, 1st and 2nd grade students at El Crystal Elementary School and Allen Elementary School in San Bruno, filed a lawsuit in San Mateo County alleging sexual abuse by teacher Jeremy Yeh.

JANE DOE (J.R.) was in first grade at El Crystal Elementary School, and Second Grade at Allen Elementary School (part of the San Bruno Park School District), and Jane Doe (K.M.) was in first and second grade at Allen Elementary School.  Both students had Mr. Yeh was their teacher and were repeatedly sexually molested and abused by Mr. Yeh.

The complaint details how the San Bruno Park School District received complaints of Mr. Yeh inappropriately touching children as early as 2017 yet failed to take any action in response to those complaints.  According to the District Attorney’s Office, “The first victim came forward in 2017 but was called a liar by the administration at El Crystal Elementary School.”

During the criminal trial, it was revealed that a student saw Mr. Yeh sexual abuse a student at school and reported it to school administrators. Instead of investigating Mr. Yeh’s alleged sexual abuse, the Principal of El Crystal, Jeanne Elliott, forced both the young girl who witnessed Mr. Yeh’s sexual abuse and the young girl who Mr. Yeh sexual abuse to have a meeting with Mr. Yeh. During the meeting, Principal Elliott forced both young girls to recount their allegations. Principal Elliott later sent an email to Mr. Yeh telling him that she would handle the situation.  She also sent a letter to all parents with children in Mr. Yeh’s class calling the young girl who he abused “a liar.”  At the time, neither Principal Elliott nor Superintendent Cheryl Olson (now retired) reported Mr. Yeh’s alleged sexual abuse to police as required by California’s mandatory reporting laws.  Superintendent Olson retired two months later.  Criminal charges may be filed by the DA’s office against Principal Elliott and former Superintendent Olson for their failure to report Mr. Yeh’s 2017 sexual abuse. As a result, both young girls were labeled as “liars” and bullied by other students.

The parents of Jane Doe (J.R.) stated: “Mr. Yeh should have never been allowed to step foot on school property after he the first child reported him to the school in 2018. The school could have prevented my daughter from being harmed, but they chose to protect this evil man.  We just don’t understand that.”  And the parents of Jane Doe (K.M.) stated: “Little girls don’t make up stuff like this. Why would the school call a girl a liar and then let this pedophile continue to be around other little girls for years!”

According to Mr. Thompson, “Jeremy Yeh is a classic pedophile that groomed young girls with special attention and rewards. He’d play ‘tickle time’ with them as guise to touch their vaginal area and buttocks. Unfortunately, his first known victim was raped. He’d still be doing it to this day but for some young girls that were brave enough to speak up.”    

Later when Mr. Yeh was arrested and charged with multiple felonies, Principal Elliott and former Superintendent Olson refused to cooperate with the San Bruno police department.  Instead, they both retained a criminal defense attorney and refused to answer questions.   

The complaint states:

During the 2017 school year, while Jeremy Yeh taught a first/second grade combined class at ECES, multiple ECES students told ECES administrators that Jeremy Yeh had pulled down a female student’s pants while hugging her and looked down the pants of another female student. One student told ECES administrators that Mr. Yeh had raped her.  Upon receiving the student reports, Defendant SBPSD and ECES administrators covered up and concealed Jeremy Yeh’s inappropriate and abhorrent conduct, failed to document, investigate, or respond to prevent further incidents of sexual misconduct of minor students, and failed to comply with their mandatory duties to report suspected and known abuse of children to law enforcement and child welfare agencies. Compounding Defendant SBPSD’s inaction, an ECES administrator who received the reports “reassured [Jeremy Yeh] that he is not a victim, rather the child is troubled” and “a liar.” ECES administrators disciplined the reporting students for “spreading rumors” and failed to report Mr. Yeh’s alleged sexual abuse as required by California’s mandatory reporting laws.

Attorneys for several Jane Does allege that administrators of San Bruno Park School District knew that Mr. Yeh routinely engaged in grooming behaviors with Jane Doe (J.R.) and Jane Doe (K.M.) and, at least, two (2) other female students, such as offering his classroom to them in the mornings and during recess to be alone with them, encouraging female students to spend time alone with him inside his classroom, contacting students outside of school via online gaming platforms and other applications, engaging in a game with female students called “tickle time” during which he would tickle the female students and while doing so, touch and grope their private parts, and was awarding “points” to only female students for completing random classroom activities, which when awarded allowed the female students to skip recess and spend time with him in his classroom.

According to Belinda Arriaga, Director of the non-profit ALAS (Ayudando Latinos A Sonar), “The victimization of children is a tragedy that we cannot look away from. At this time more than ever we are reminded of how often our immigrant community is often silenced by fear and societal policies that push them into the shadows, and they are often scared to come forward as victims of crime. It is imperative that children and families know that there is support and care for them- and that they are not alone.”

As part of their investigation, San Bruno Police Department discovered a total of 4 child victims of Mr. Yeh’s sexual abuse. Mr. Yeh was later charged with 22 felonies for the sexual abuse of 4 students. (23-NF-006163-A | The People of the State of California vs. Jeremy Pakyin Yeh).  At the time, Mr. Yeh told police that he had never had a girlfriend before and that he wanted to "feel what it was like to be with a woman."

“The criminal prosecutions are critical because they highlight the problem of sexual abuse of our kids while they are at school.  Nobody wants to think people like Jeremy Yeh exists, but people like him are far too common. These prosecutions highlight the need for our schools to be more proactive about preventing sex abuse.  Now that the criminal case is over, it is time to hold the San Bruno Parc School District responsible for its failures, which are egregious.  My clients’ intent is to shine a light on the Districts actions and inactions, and to prevent this from ever happening again at a school within the District.”  Thompson said.

Two of the Jane Does are represented by attorneys, Bobby Thompson of TLO LAW, P.C. in Burlingame, CA.  Anyone with information about abuse by Jeremy Yeh or his sexual abuse of children while employed by the San Bruno Park School District are encouraged to contact Bobby Thompson at TLO LAW, P.C. at 650-513-6111 or bobby@tlopc.com.  Other victims of Mr. Yeh’s sexual abuse, and their families, should know that they eligible for U-Visas, as well as other mental health resources, and that they will not get in any trouble by coming forward with other incidences of Mr. Yeh’s sexual abuse.

For sexual assault legal representation in California, contact Thompson Law Offices at TLO-LAW.com

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