Content warning: this article contains mentions of rape and sexual assault.
Jane* was just 16 when she was raped for two hours by a boy from her school in Sydney in 2019. The rapist, Dan*, was convicted of six counts of sexual intercourse without consent and one of intentionally choking without permission.
But the abuse had started months before. Female students had been harassed by a group of boys who made rape “jokes” and threatened girls and teachers. Jane and her family were relentless in their fight to protect female students.
But it wasn’t enough.
The school and the NSW Education Department failed disastrously to deal with the lead-up to, and the aftermath of, Jane’s rape. Initial threats weren’t reported to the police, and although boys’ behaviour was addressed, a “preventive program” was launched for female students. Jane reported being asked to “forgive” the boys for harassing her, and after the rape she was told to leave class early to avoid her abuser.
An internal investigation into the school’s response, while not publicly released, offers little hope. Jane and her family weren’t interviewed and haven’t been given details of it, let alone a copy of the report. Several of their complaints, including allegations of other rapes linked to the school, weren’t investigated.
It’s yet another example of victim-blaming, inaction and ineptitude in addressing gender-based violence among young people. Serious allegations were downplayed and dismissed, sending a dangerous message to potential victims and abusers. From 2014 to 2019 there were nearly 150,000 victims of sexual assault recorded by police agencies — 63% of whom were aged under 18.
Dan has been sentenced to just nine months behind bars with a two-month non-parole period and is appealing his case. Neither the victim nor the abuser can be publicly identified.
Now the family is considering suing the Education Department. The department said it understood the incident was traumatic but could not provide further comment in case the family decided to proceed with legal action.
Failure #1: rape threats not treated seriously
In 2019 Jane became increasingly distressed at Dan and a group of boys’ in her year level, alleging they made multiple rape “jokes” and describing how they would like to sexually assault different peers, in one instance directly threatening to rape a teacher.
Jane was horrified and reported the incident to a teacher, writing about the incident to the school and requesting anonymity. Her parents wrote a letter too, with her father, Jack*, arguing it was “important to remind the girls that they do not have to put up with any inappropriate behaviour from boys in the school (or anywhere else for that matter)”. They asked the acting principal to lodge a written report with the police.
Instead the school dealt with it internally. The acting principal announced in a letter provided to Crikey meetings for the year level and small group work, a program on respectful relationships and masculinity, small group work for some males on a number of issues, and one-on-one sessions for some boys. The group of boys also had a meeting with a police youth liaison officer.
The boys’ parents, the acting principal wrote in a letter to Jane’s family, “have not sought to minimise the situation and are being highly proactive in their response”. But despite the “highly proactive” parents, one boy wasn’t at the meeting with the police liaison officer: Dan. He skipped school that day.
The department didn’t respond to Crikey or the family’s questions about whether disciplinary action was taken, whether a report was ever submitted to the police, or whether Dan’s family were tipped off about the police liaison meeting.
Failure #2: girls’ behaviour scrutinised over harassers
The ongoing harassment had a huge impact on Jane’s mental health; a psychologist noted she presented with generalised anxiety, low mood and panic attacks which affected her concentration, memory and decision-making “due to multiple incidents of intimidating behaviour from certain male students”. Her anxiety, the psychologist noted, was “compounded by dismissive/ invalidating comments from some of her friends and one teacher in response to her ongoing concerns about risk of harm”. The psychologist’s report was sent to the principal.
Despite the very real threat to Jane’s physical and mental health, she and other female students were treated as if they were the problem. Although she had made her complaint confidentially to a teacher, Jane’s father alleges the principal pulled his daughter into a room and asked her to forgive the group of boys for their behaviour and proposed she listen to their apology. The principal did this without contacting Jane’s parents.
“She’s 15 and pulled into the principal’s office — without me or my wife being present — and told to forgive the rape harassers, and because only by forgiveness could they have redemption,” Jack told Crikey. “This is what we consider the most important fuck-up by the principal … bringing her warped worldview into the classroom.”
The school also announced a “universal preventive program for the female cohort”. The department didn’t respond to questions about what this entailed.
Jane’s parents’ continued asking for the boys’ threats to be reported to the police and for Dan to be met with by the liaison officer. Four days after meeting with the principal in person to discuss these concerns, Dan raped Jane.
Failure #3: rapist allowed to stay at school
It happened late at night at a house party. Dan raped an intoxicated Jane vaginally, orally and digitally and choked her. Nearly a year later, Jane revealed the incident to a teacher and it was reported to NSW Police, eventually resulting in a conviction. Just 13% of women in Australia reported their most recent rape to police, citing fear of not being believed, fear of their abuser, police reactions or the legal system, and shame and stigma.
The school did nothing to keep Dan away from Jane — instead, she was told to leave class early to avoid him in the corridor. Only after the charges were filed was Jane granted an apprehended domestic violence order and Dan left the school. She faced harassment from Dan’s sister for months.
“They failed to protect her before the rape and after the rape,” Jack said.
Crikey understands a review into conducting risk assessments for student sexual assaults where the alleged victim and alleged perpetrator attend the same school site is under way.
Failure #4: investigators fail to investigate key allegations
After Dan was convicted, the Education Department announced it would launch a professional and ethical standards (PES) investigation into employee conduct and whether the school had breached its duty of care.
But what it investigated isn’t clear. Jane wasn’t interviewed. Her family wasn’t interviewed. Allegations raised by Jack about multiple other rapes linked to the school — including several under investigation by a police taskforce — weren’t looked into. Jack said teachers had raised concerns about being fired for speaking to investigators (the department later said teachers would be protected for making disclosures).
The investigation was supposed to take six months. Instead, it took 20. Jane and her family weren’t even told when the report had been finalised and found out six weeks after the fact. They were denied a copy or details about what was investigated and what action was taken.
“They have been so deliberately trying to cover it up, it’s ridiculous,” Jack said.
The department only requested more information on Jane’s “forgiveness” meeting and details collected by Jack about a second rape linked to the school this month — two months after the investigation concluded.
The department said PES investigation outcomes are protected from public release under state legislation.
Failure #5: the ongoing impact on victim-survivors
Jane is not the same person she was before 2019, Jack said. “This is a kid that was so confident she could do anything. Now she’s absolutely destroyed by what happened.”
Dan hasn’t admitted to the rape, hasn’t shown remorse for his crime, and has blamed Jane for his attack. He’s out free on bail while he waits on his appeal in October. NSW Attorney-General Mark Speakman said he will review Dan’s sentencing.
“This is what happens,” Jack said. “The girls are destroyed and the boys just go on to live their lives.”
Jane and her family’s lawyer, Michael Bradley — who also represents and writes for Crikey — said the case represented a colossal system failure: “There was a big problem developing at the school with a wolfpack of boys who were out of control and targeting female students, and they needed to be directly comprehensively addressed before something bad happened. And the school just didn’t take that seriously enough.
“The school system is not equipped — and has not been equipped — to respond to the increasing incidence of student-on-student sexual violence. In this particular case, this particular school just didn’t do their job to protect her. And the consequences for her have been appalling.”
*Names have been changed for privacy reasons.
If you or someone you know has been or is affected by sexual assault or violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 or visit 1800RESPECT.org.au. Survivors of abuse can find support by calling Bravehearts on1800 272 831 or the Blue Knot Foundation at 1300 657 380. The Kids Helpline is 1800 55 1800. In an emergency, call 000.
