HIGH-SCHOOL

Former Lake Travis football parent sues school district over peanut allergy incident

Austin American-Statesman

Former Lake Travis lineman Carter Mannon, with is mother Shawna after a game last fall, had his football gear stuffed with peanuts after he told teammates he "could die" from exposure to peanut products, of which he is allergic. He has since transferred to Vandegrift.

The family of former Lake Travis High School football player Carter Mannon has filed a lawsuit against the school district alleging officials failed to address an incident last fall in accordance with bullying and discrimination laws after two of Mannon's teammates stuffed his gear and shoes with peanuts before a game last fall.

In the lawsuit, the family alleges the district failed to take any action to prevent bullying against their son and that the teammates knew Mannon was severely allergic to peanut products. The lawsuit was filed Saturday by Shawna Mannon, Carter's mother.

"There's no rhyme or reason to the timing (of the complaint)," she told the American-Statesman on Tuesday. "We had exhausted our resources. We had done our due diligence. We're going the legal route because we didn't get what we wanted."

The October incident that started it all

The Oct. 5 incident garnered significant attention and outrage in the community.

Shawna Mannon testified at a school board meeting in November that her son had been bullied by two players from the Cavaliers' football team. At the time of the incident, head coach and athletic director Hank Carter suspended the players for two games, a penalty some parents felt was too lenient.

The district later ruled that the incident didn't meet "the legal definition" of bullying, according to the lawsuit.

Lake Travis football coach Hank Carter is listed as one of four defendants in a lawsuit against the Lake Travis school district for its handling of an incident last fall where football players stuffed peanuts into the gear of a teammate who suffers from severe peanut allergies. The players were suspended for two games, and the district did not classify the incident as bullying.

Carter, along with Lake Travis superintendent Paul Norton, Lake Travis High School principal Debbie Garinger and assistant principal Sandy Surdy are named as defendants. The Statesman reached out to the defendants on Tuesday for comment.

The Lake Travis district takes allegations of bullying and harassment seriously, the district said in a statement.

"We responded immediately when we learned of this situation, conducting a thorough investigation," the district said in the statement. "We disagree with the allegations contained in the lawsuit, and we look forward to responding through the appropriate legal channels. The safety of our students and staff is our highest priority."

Family wants changes to be made at LTISD

The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court of the Western District of Texas, seeks $1.5 million in damages. The lawsuit also asks that a judge compel the school district to implement training for staff and students about harassment based on disability, adopt policies to deal with student complaints about disability-based discrimination, and modify programs to stop "engaging in unconstitutional and unlawful acts."

The lawsuit alleges the district failed to follow state law about stopping ongoing bullying, addressing cyberbullying or adequately disciplining the students involved.

The lawsuit also alleges the district only investigated the incident after Shawna Mannon's November testimony to the board and that the investigation drew an "erroneous conclusion" that "simply contradicts the legal definition of bullying."

Carter Mannon, who recently transferred to Vandegrift, "endured persistent disability-based harassment, bullying, and assaults from teammates due to his life-threatening peanut allergies, with one perpetrator referring to the actions as 'attempted murder,'" according to the lawsuit.

"Despite (Carter Mannon's) efforts to seek help from school authorities, LTISD was deliberately indifferent to the ongoing bullying, failing to intervene or provide accommodations, properly supervise students, and staff, or enforce disciplinary measures mandated by state law for students committing assault," according to the lawsuit.

According to Shawna Mannon, her son told his teammates he could die from exposure to peanut products. He developed hives on one arm but was able to play in a game that night.

How food allergies are classified by the U.S. Department of Education

On Tuesday, Shawna Mannon said this was not the first time her son had been exposed to peanuts at the school. When Carter Mannon was a freshman, he bit into a cookie that had peanuts in it. It was labeled "Big Cookie" but did not list ingredients and did not have a bar code.

According to Shawna Mannon, her son went into anaphylactic shock. He felt his airway closing. He ran to the nurse's station and an EpiPen was used before he left in an ambulance for a nearby hospital.

In March, several students on the football team spoke at a school board meeting that they didn't think any bullying had happened and that Carter Mannon hadn't needed medical attention after finding peanuts in his locker.

The U.S. Department of Education classifies food allergies as a disability covered by Section 504 if the allergy limits one or more of a student's major life activities, such as walking, breathing or learning. Section 504 is a federal designation that protects people from discrimination based on their disability and requires schools to provide free and appropriate public education.

Carter Mannon will have two years of eligibility at Vandegrift.