Written and reviewed by Josh Kohanim, Esq., California Bar No. 328609 · Published · Reviewed
In this guide
Inland Empire claim volume
The Fiscal Crisis and Management Assistance Team's January 31, 2025 report to the Legislature summarizes 2023 claim data from 14 public entity risk pools and school agencies. Claims came from 48 of California's 58 counties, but the epicenter is five Southern California counties: Los Angeles, Orange, San Diego, Riverside and San Bernardino. Those five hold 65 percent of the 2,079 claims reported and 14 of the state's 25 largest districts. Children aged 13 to 17 are most at risk. Offenses occur most often in classrooms. Teachers are the most common perpetrators, at 38 percent. The highest-value claims come from middle schools. One risk pool reported that claims rose 23 percent between June 30, 2023 and June 30, 2024. Source: FCMAT, January 31, 2025. The law that applies in every district is on our California school sexual abuse lawyer page.
Moreno Valley Unified
In October 2023, a Riverside County jury returned a $135 million verdict against Moreno Valley Unified over a Vista Heights Middle School teacher who abused two sixth graders in 1996 and 1997. It found the district 90 percent responsible. A January 2025 state report says the plaintiffs accepted a reduced $45 million judgment for immediate payment, and that four more claims involving the same abuser were pending. A separate suit over a campus officer at Canyon Springs High was filed January 16, 2026 and is active. Sources: CBS Los Angeles, FCMAT, Panish Shea Ravipudi. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Every case depends on its own facts. The full record is on our Moreno Valley Unified page.
Redlands Unified
Redlands Unified, in San Bernardino County, has paid $9.65 million since 2016 to resolve three suits over Laura Whitehurst, a former teacher and coach sentenced in 2013, including a $1.4 million settlement in September 2025. Across all sexual abuse suits by one law firm since 2016, it has paid more than $50 million. A Southern California News Group investigation found the district "for decades, frequently failed to report to authorities" accused employees. Source: Haas Unlimited, September 16, 2025. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Every case depends on its own facts. The full record is on our Redlands Unified page.
Riverside Unified
Riverside Unified paid $6.2 million in late 2018 to settle claims for three children abused by a Liberty Elementary teacher's aide, Fernando Figueroa, who pleaded guilty and was sentenced in December 2019 to 20 years to life. Three more children sued in September 2019, alleging that children and parents had reported his conduct to teachers and the principal and that no one acted. Sources: Manly Stewart & Finaldi, CBS Los Angeles. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Every case depends on its own facts. The full record is on our Riverside Unified page.
Filing deadlines
Two tracks apply in every Inland Empire district. For conduct on or after January 1, 2024, there is no time limit; AB 452 wrote that into Code of Civil Procedure section 340.1(p). For earlier conduct, the AB 218 rules apply. A survivor may file until age 40, or within five years of discovering that an adult psychological injury was caused by the abuse, whichever is later. Survivors 40 and older must file certificates of merit from an attorney and a licensed mental health practitioner. No government claim is required. Government Code section 905(m) exempts childhood sexual assault claims, so the six-month claim deadline for other injury cases against a district does not apply. 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
A district answers for its employees. Government Code section 815.2(a) makes a public entity liable for an employee's act or omission within the scope of employment. In C.A. v. William S. Hart Union High School District (2012) 53 Cal.4th 861, the California Supreme Court held that a district can be liable for administrators who negligently hired, kept or supervised an abusive employee. School personnel must use reasonable measures to protect students from foreseeable injury. 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 prior misconduct. Whether administrators responded reasonably to warning signs is a jury question. Section 340.1 allows up to treble damages for a proved cover-up, but in Los Angeles Unified School District v. Superior Court (2023) the California Supreme Court held that public districts do not pay them.
A confidential first step
A Jane Doe or John Doe filing is common in these cases; the Canyon Springs plaintiff used one. Courts commonly allow it, and we will ask whether you want one. You do not have to face the abuser to bring a claim. Nothing you tell us is shared without your say. No fee unless we recover. If there is no recovery, you owe no fee and no case costs. Spanish-speaking staff answer the phone.
Records to gather
You do not need documents to make a first call, but they help. For an adult survivor: the school, the years, and the adult's role; yearbooks, report cards, photos or messages that place you there; the names of friends who knew. Do not contact the abuser or the district, and do not post details online. Our before you call checklist walks through it. For a parent: write down what your child said, in their words, with the date; keep messages and devices; ask the school for its written policy and its Title IX coordinator's name. Our after your child tells you checklist covers each step.
Sources cited
- FCMAT, January 31, 2025: Childhood Sexual Assault, Fiscal Implications for California Public Agencies
- CBS Los Angeles, October 11, 2023: the Moreno Valley verdict and Panish Shea Ravipudi, January 2026: the Canyon Springs High suit
- Haas Unlimited, September 16, 2025: the Redlands Unified settlements
- Manly Stewart & Finaldi, September 26, 2019: the Riverside Unified suits and CBS Los Angeles, December 13, 2019: the sentence
- Code of Civil Procedure section 340.1 and CSBA on AB 452
- Government Code section 905(m) and section 815.2
- Los Angeles Unified School District v. Superior Court (2023), C.A. v. William S. Hart (2012) and Doe v. Lawndale (2021)
- CalMatters, August 30, 2026: SB 577 sent to the Governor and SB 577 bill status