Lawsuit: Patchogue-Medford school officials did nothing as twins endured years of bullying
South Ocean Middle School in Patchogue on Tuesday. Credit: Newsday/Steve Pfost
A pair of eighth-grade twins from Patchogue endured years of harassment and bullying from other students but school officials took no action to curb the behavior, leading one of the teens to make three attempts on his life, according to a federal lawsuit.
An attorney for parents Debra and William Dawson and their children filed the lawsuit last month in the Eastern District of New York. It alleges the leadership of South Ocean Middle School in Patchogue failed to protect their children — a boy and girl, now 14 — from an ongoing campaign of bullying by seven students.
The litigation names the Patchogue-Medford School District and the school, along with Principal Timothy Piciullo, Assistant Principal Maria Del Pilar Erdmann and Dean Ryan Crabtree as defendants, while seeking unspecified financial damages.
A spokesperson for the Patchogue-Medford School District said in emails the district "does not comment on individual student matters or pending litigation" and that school officials named in the complaint declined to comment.
The lawsuit alleges the bullying began Nov. 7, 2022, when two students allegedly photographed the son undressed in a middle school bathroom stall and shared the image on social media platform Snapchat. It contends in another incident, Del Pilar Erdmann "berated" the daughter while she was having an anxiety attack in the nurse's office.
Both children, their parents said in an interview, developed eating disorders, had their grades falter — the son was home-schooled for several months — and now suffer from depression and anxiety. The family now is planning to move out of the district.
"The way the district has mishandled bullying within their district is, to put it mildly, quite atrocious," said Marc Kramer, the family’s Patchogue-based attorney. "Our clients are being told it's a miscommunication, or a dispute between children. That's not what's happening here."
Debra Dawson, who was a district food service worker, contends she was passed over for a promotion in January 2024 and "forced to quit" because of her intervention to try to stop the alleged harassment.
The Feb. 25 lawsuit cites alleged violations of Title IX — which prohibits sex-based discrimination — along with alleged violations of the First Amendment, the state’s human rights and civil rights laws, and claims of negligence and unlawful retaliation.
The Dawsons said in an interview that after the alleged bathroom stall incident, they filed a report with the Suffolk County Police Department and a complaint with the district through the state’s Dignity for All Students Act, which is designed to protect students from harassment, bullying or discrimination. The allegation was determined to be "founded" but the school took no action against the perpetrators, Kramer said.
On Oct. 24, 2023, a female student allegedly began spreading an unfounded rumor about the Dawsons' son involving alleged behavior in a school bathroom, according to Debra Dawson.
"The students were saying there was a video of the incident and that it was circulating," the mother added. "I called the school ... but they never notified the police."
The parents contacted police again, Debra Dawson said, adding that no criminal charges were filed in connection with either of the family's complaints.
A Suffolk police spokeswoman said Monday she couldn't immediately provide information related to the parents' claims and advised Newsday to file a Freedom of Information Law request.
The parents filed another DASA complaint which school officials determined to be "founded," but resulted in no punishment for the perpetrators, the suit states.
The lawsuit alleges the son got into a physical confrontation with other students that led to a three-day school suspension. When a school counselor called Piciullo to express concern about the son, the principal dismissed it as minor "conflicts," the suit states.
In another alleged incident in December 2023, several district students chased the twins from a movie theater, according to the lawsuit. Debra Dawson said she was waiting outside and verbally admonished the teens. The mother said one or more of the students took a video of her speaking to them, posted it on TikTok and shared it with school officials.
After that, Debra Dawson said the district's head of human resources told her "you have to choose whether you're going to be a parent or you're going to work for the district."
She ultimately quit in February 2024.
A pair of eighth-grade twins from Patchogue endured years of harassment and bullying from other students but school officials took no action to curb the behavior, leading one of the teens to make three attempts on his life, according to a federal lawsuit.
An attorney for parents Debra and William Dawson and their children filed the lawsuit last month in the Eastern District of New York. It alleges the leadership of South Ocean Middle School in Patchogue failed to protect their children — a boy and girl, now 14 — from an ongoing campaign of bullying by seven students.
The litigation names the Patchogue-Medford School District and the school, along with Principal Timothy Piciullo, Assistant Principal Maria Del Pilar Erdmann and Dean Ryan Crabtree as defendants, while seeking unspecified financial damages.
A spokesperson for the Patchogue-Medford School District said in emails the district "does not comment on individual student matters or pending litigation" and that school officials named in the complaint declined to comment.
WHAT NEWSDAY FOUND
- A federal lawsuit alleges officials in the Patchogue-Medford School District took no action to stop other students from bullying a pair of twins who now are in eighth grade.
- A school spokesperson said the district "does not comment on individual student matters or pending litigation."
- The twins' parents said they developed eating disorders, had their grades falter and now also suffer from depression and anxiety.
The lawsuit alleges the bullying began Nov. 7, 2022, when two students allegedly photographed the son undressed in a middle school bathroom stall and shared the image on social media platform Snapchat. It contends in another incident, Del Pilar Erdmann "berated" the daughter while she was having an anxiety attack in the nurse's office.
Both children, their parents said in an interview, developed eating disorders, had their grades falter — the son was home-schooled for several months — and now suffer from depression and anxiety. The family now is planning to move out of the district.
"The way the district has mishandled bullying within their district is, to put it mildly, quite atrocious," said Marc Kramer, the family’s Patchogue-based attorney. "Our clients are being told it's a miscommunication, or a dispute between children. That's not what's happening here."
Debra Dawson, who was a district food service worker, contends she was passed over for a promotion in January 2024 and "forced to quit" because of her intervention to try to stop the alleged harassment.
The Feb. 25 lawsuit cites alleged violations of Title IX — which prohibits sex-based discrimination — along with alleged violations of the First Amendment, the state’s human rights and civil rights laws, and claims of negligence and unlawful retaliation.
The Dawsons said in an interview that after the alleged bathroom stall incident, they filed a report with the Suffolk County Police Department and a complaint with the district through the state’s Dignity for All Students Act, which is designed to protect students from harassment, bullying or discrimination. The allegation was determined to be "founded" but the school took no action against the perpetrators, Kramer said.
On Oct. 24, 2023, a female student allegedly began spreading an unfounded rumor about the Dawsons' son involving alleged behavior in a school bathroom, according to Debra Dawson.
"The students were saying there was a video of the incident and that it was circulating," the mother added. "I called the school ... but they never notified the police."
The parents contacted police again, Debra Dawson said, adding that no criminal charges were filed in connection with either of the family's complaints.
A Suffolk police spokeswoman said Monday she couldn't immediately provide information related to the parents' claims and advised Newsday to file a Freedom of Information Law request.
The parents filed another DASA complaint which school officials determined to be "founded," but resulted in no punishment for the perpetrators, the suit states.
The lawsuit alleges the son got into a physical confrontation with other students that led to a three-day school suspension. When a school counselor called Piciullo to express concern about the son, the principal dismissed it as minor "conflicts," the suit states.
In another alleged incident in December 2023, several district students chased the twins from a movie theater, according to the lawsuit. Debra Dawson said she was waiting outside and verbally admonished the teens. The mother said one or more of the students took a video of her speaking to them, posted it on TikTok and shared it with school officials.
After that, Debra Dawson said the district's head of human resources told her "you have to choose whether you're going to be a parent or you're going to work for the district."
She ultimately quit in February 2024.
Robert Brodsky is a breaking news reporter who has worked at Newsday since 2011. He is a Queens College and American University alum.
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