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Clovis Unified sexual abuse claimsConfidential. No fee unless we recover.

In June 2025, five former Fancher Creek Elementary students sued Clovis Unified, alleging a teacher abused them from 1998 to 2005 and that officials never reported him. It was pending as last reported. Survivors of abuse at any Clovis Unified school can still bring claims. You can read this page without contacting anyone, and nothing happens unless you say so.

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Josh Kohanim, Esq.Written and reviewed by Josh Kohanim, Esq., California Bar No. 328609 · Published · Reviewed

In this guide

You can read this page without contacting anyone. If you decide to reach out, you can do it without giving your name. Nothing happens until you say so. If this happened to you or your child at a Clovis Unified school, the record below is public, and the sections after it explain what the law allows. The law in full is on our California school sexual abuse lawyer page.

The record at Clovis Unified

On June 17, 2025, the law firm Pfau Cochran Vertetis Amala announced a lawsuit against Clovis Unified School District and Fancher Creek Elementary on behalf of five former students. The complaint alleges that a second grade teacher, Neng Yang, sexually abused the plaintiffs between 1998 and 2005, when they were seven and eight years old, and showed pornography to students on his phone at school. It alleges that officials received complaints beginning in the 1998 to 1999 school year. One plaintiff, then seven, says officials accused her of lying and sent her to psychological treatment. The complaint says officials were mandated reporters and never reported Yang to the authorities. CalMatters covered the suit in July 2025 as one of at least 1,000 AB 218 lawsuits against California districts and counties.

Status of the cases

The civil case was pending when the sources on this page were published, and we have found no reported resolution. An allegation in a complaint is not a finding. Clovis Unified has not been found liable, and nothing on this page says otherwise. Yang's criminal case is separate. According to the firm that filed the suit, he was arrested after police found videos on his phone and was sentenced in 2014 to 38 years in prison for producing child pornography. CalMatters reports the same 38-year sentence. If the civil case resolves, this page will be updated with the outcome, the date and the source. Other districts in the region are on our Central Valley and Sacramento page.

Filing deadlines

California has two tracks. For abuse on or after January 1, 2024, there is no time limit; that is AB 452, now Code of Civil Procedure section 340.1(p). For abuse before that date, AB 218 controls: a survivor may file until age 40, or within five years of discovering that an adult injury was caused by the abuse, whichever is later. Survivors 40 and older also file certificates of merit from an attorney and a licensed mental health practitioner. No government claim is required for childhood sexual assault under Government Code section 905(m). SB 577 passed the Legislature at the end of August 2026 and awaited the Governor as of September 23, 2026. It may change the rules for older claims. Our statute of limitations page tracks it.

District responsibility

The Clovis complaint turns on what officials knew and did, which is how these cases are decided. A public district answers for its employees under Government Code section 815.2. In C.A. v. William S. Hart Union High School District (2012), the California Supreme Court held that a district can be liable when its administrators negligently hired, kept or supervised an abusive employee. In Doe v. Lawndale Elementary School District (2021), the Court of Appeal held that this duty does not depend on proof that the district knew of the employee's prior misconduct. Whether administrators responded reasonably to warning signs is a question for the jury. Section 340.1 allows up to treble damages for a cover-up, but in Los Angeles Unified School District v. Superior Court (2023) the Supreme Court held that Government Code section 818 bars that enhancement against public entities. We do not promise it.

A confidential first step

Call, text, or use the confidential form on this page. The form has no narrative box; it asks how to reach you and whether it is safe to call. A Jane Doe or John Doe filing is common in these cases, and we will ask whether you want one. You do not have to face the abuser to bring a claim. We handle cases statewide by phone, video and travel. No fee unless we recover. If there is no recovery, you owe no fee and no case costs.

Records to gather

You do not need any documents to call. Our before you call checklist for adult survivors lists what helps: the school and the years, the adult's role, yearbooks, report cards, photos, messages, and friends who knew. Parents can use our after your child tells you checklist. Write down what your child said in their words, with the date. Preserve messages and devices, and ask the school for its written policy and its Title IX coordinator's name. Do not contact the abuser or the district, and do not post details online.

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Sources cited

Frequently asked questions

Can I still sue Clovis Unified if the abuse happened in the late 1990s or early 2000s?
Possibly, yes. For abuse before January 1, 2024, a survivor may file until age 40, or within five years of discovering that an adult injury was caused by the abuse, whichever is later. Survivors 40 and older file certificates of merit from an attorney and a mental health practitioner. SB 577, awaiting the Governor as of September 2026, may change the rules for older claims, so an attorney should check your dates soon.
Do I have to use my real name in a lawsuit against a school district?
Usually not. Survivors in these cases commonly file as Jane Doe or John Doe, and the Clovis plaintiffs' public announcement did not name them. We will ask whether you want a Doe filing and explain what it protects and what it does not. Your first contact with us is confidential, you can use any name, and you decide whether anything goes further.
What if I never told anyone at the time?
That is common, and it does not bar a claim. The law recognizes that many survivors understand the harm only as adults, which is why the pre-2024 track can run five years from discovery. A district's responsibility turns on what its staff knew or should have noticed, not on whether you reported it as a child. An attorney will listen first and ask about proof later.
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