NORTH COUNTY -- The state Supreme Court is scheduled to hear arguments Thursday in a lawsuit in which a former Vista High School student alleges that a teacher sexually abused her almost 30 years ago and that the Vista school district failed to prevent it.

The former teacher, Jeffrey Paul Jones, 59, does not dispute that he had a relationship with the former student, but contends she has "overstated" some of the allegations in her lawsuit, Jones' attorney said.

The case could reverberate far beyond Vista.

The former student did not file a lawsuit until more than two decades after the alleged sexual abuse occurred -- long after the time limits state law normally imposes for bringing cases against public agencies.

If the Supreme Court decides that a change in state law in 2002 extended those time limits, representatives of public schools and other agencies statewide have said they fear public entities could be exposed to childhood sexual abuse lawsuits similar to those that plague the Roman Catholic Church today.

The woman's attorney, however, said purported fears of an onslaught of new cases are unfounded because the law at issue required cases like his client's lawsuit to be filed by the end of 2003.

Woman sues former teacher, district

The lawsuit that has reached the state Supreme Court was filed in September 2003, about 24 years after the sexual activity between Jones and his student is said to have come to an end.

The former student, who today is a 44-year-old mother, alleged that Jones had sex with her the first time in May 1978 and continued to molest her until November 1979. She was 15 when the alleged sexual abuse began, and Jones was 30. The lawsuit alleged that Jones used his position of trust to seduce his then-student, and that her age at the time invalidated "any consent on her part."

The woman did not report what had happened until 2001, when her own daughter was a Vista High School student. The woman saw Jones at a school function, became upset about what had happened to her in her youth, and eventually filed a report with the Sheriff's Department, the lawsuit alleged.

Prosecutors filed criminal charges against Jones in connection with the woman's report to the Sheriff's Department. A Superior Court judge dismissed those charges in July 2003 because of a U.S. Supreme Court decision that year. The nation's highest court ruled in an unrelated case that the California law prosecutors used to file charges against Jones was unconstitutional.

A document prosecutors filed in the criminal case that is part of the court's public record and was reviewed by the North County Times alleged that Jones admitted to Detective Peggy Vistercil in a May 2002 interview that he engaged in sex acts with the woman when she was a student between the ages of 15 and 17.

The woman's lawsuit alleged that it was not until September 2003 that a psychologist diagnosed that "psychological injuries" the woman experienced as an adult were caused by "sexual abuse" by Jones. The lawsuit does not specify what the psychological injuries were.

The North County Times does not identify victims of alleged sexual abuse.

Manuel Corrales, an attorney for the woman, declined to elaborate on the psychological injuries the woman suffered and how she is coping with them today.

The California Commission on Teacher Credentialing has revoked Jones' teaching credential.

Jonathan Vanderpool, Jones' attorney in the civil case, said that some of the woman's allegations in her lawsuit are "overstated" and that he would "take issue" with the allegations that the relationship caused "everything that has befallen her personally and otherwise."

The woman also alleged in her lawsuit that "like the Catholic Church," school district officials knew or should have known about Jones' alleged sexual misconduct toward his student, "but failed to do anything to protect" her. The lawsuit included an allegation that a school administrator at one point knocked on Jones' locked classroom door when Jones and his student were having sex and knew what was occurring.

The Vista Unified School District's attorney, Daniel Shinoff, disputed the allegation that district officials knew what was happening.

"I haven't found any evidence that anybody knew anything about this," Shinoff said.

Appeals reach Supreme Court

Superior Court Judge S. Charles Wickersham dismissed the lawsuit against Jones and the Vista Unified School District in 2003 because the woman did not file a claim with the district within six months of when the alleged sexual molestation ended in 1979.

A person with a grievance against a public agency generally must file a claim within six months of being injured to give school districts and other agencies a chance to investigate, possibly settle, and fix dangerous conditions before a lawsuit is filed.

The 4th District Court of Appeal in San Diego overturned Wickersham in 2005, based on changes to a law that allow more alleged childhood sexual abuse victims to file lawsuits several years after the fact.

State legislators amended the law in 2002 to allow victims of alleged childhood sexual abuse who are older than 26 to file lawsuits against institutions like the Catholic Church. The law stated that cases that otherwise would have been prohibited before Jan. 1, 2003, would be allowed if they were filed by the end of 2003.

The Supreme Court will decide whether the changes to that law also extend the time in which people can file claims with public agencies like school districts, cities or counties.

Corrales said the law at issue originally was enacted to protect children from abuse in the home, later extended that protection outside the home, and should apply to schools.

"Children have to be protected in school just like they have to be protected in church and at home," Corrales said.

The California State Association of Counties and the League of California Cities have filed a legal brief with the Supreme Court to support the Vista school district.

Jennifer Henning, an attorney for those organizations, argued in the brief that the appeal's court ruling in the Vista case could "open public entities to infinite exposure for childhood sexual abuse." It also would eliminate one of the reasons state law requires that claims be filed -- to allow a public entity to interview witnesses and collect evidence while it is fresh, Henning wrote.

Corrales said an onslaught of new cases will not occur because of the 2003 time limit in the law. Henning said public agencies still could be exposed to childhood sexual abuse lawsuits for which the 2003 time limit does not apply.

Shinoff said the courts and attorneys should look at the legislative intent behind the 2002 amendments to the law regarding childhood sexual abuse lawsuits.

While serving in the state Senate in 2002, John Burton, D-San Francisco, wrote the amendment to the law. Now retired, Burton said in a telephone interview that the changes to the law were focused on addressing what churches knew or should have known about alleged sexual abuse.

Burton said that no one really asked about what effect the revised law would have on school districts. He also said he believes the intent of the revised law was to allow someone who alleges childhood sexual abuse to be able to file a lawsuit. Referring to the claims requirement for public agencies, Burton said "what is largely an administrative act" should not prevent a victim of alleged abuse from suing.

What effect the Supreme Court's ruling ultimately could have on public agencies like school districts statewide is unclear, raising concerns for school districts, Shinoff said.

"I guess it's the unknown that is always of concern," Shinoff said.

Experts say misconduct is prevalent

Parallels between the sexual abuse crisis in the Catholic Church and the occurrence of teacher sexual abuse of students have been drawn by some who are familiar with alleged sexual misconduct by teachers. One expert said, however, that available study data make an accurate comparison impossible.

Robert Shoop, a Kansas State University professor who specializes in education law, said he has spent 20 years looking at the issue of sexual misconduct by educators. Shoop said he has served as an expert witness in multiple civil cases on the issue of what a school district's legal standard of care is.

"I think it's much bigger than the Catholic Church problem that has gotten so much attention," Shoop said of the issue of teacher sexual misconduct toward students. "It's where the priest thing was 10 years ago. It's a very insidious problem."

However, available statistics about the prevalence of students being subjected to misconduct are not comparable to data regarding sexual abuse by priests, said Charol Shakeshaft, professor at Hofstra University Long Island, N.Y., who in 2004 wrote a report for the U.S. Department of Education analyzing research on the issue of alleged sexual misconduct by teachers.

Shakeshaft said she was not aware of any nationwide studies of the issue of sexual misconduct by teachers since 2004. In 2003, Shakeshaft said, she analyzed data compiled in a 2000 American Association of University Women survey of students in eighth through 11th grades about sexual harassment in schools.

Based on that information, Shakeshaft estimated that 7 percent to 10 percent of students in the United States, or 3.5 million to 4.5 million, report having been the target of sexual misconduct by teachers, including physical contact or visual actions like showing pornography, at some point in their academic lives, Shakeshaft said.

No benchmarks exist, though, to determine whether allegations of misconduct by teachers have increased, decreased or remained the same over the years, Shakeshaft said.

"My reading of the research right now is that it is more likely what we see now is the outcome of increased reporting as opposed to an increase in misconduct," Shakeshaft said.

Department of Education Deputy Secretary Eugene Hickock wrote in a preface to Shakeshaft's 2004 report that sexual abuse in schools is "of grave concern," but added that "the overwhelming majority of America's educators are true professionals" and that the "vast majority of schools in America are safe places."

Contact staff writer Scott Marshall at (760) 631-6623 or smarshall@nctimes.com.

Previous articles:

State Supreme Court to hear lawsuit against VUSD

Court reinstates lawsuit against VUSD

Woman seeks $16M from VUSD

Charges against Vista teacher dismissed

Supreme Court opinion affects local cases

Trial of Vista teacher postponed to July

Vista teacher faces trial on sex charges

Vista High teacher accused of sex crimes

What's happening?: The California Supreme Court will hear a civil case involving a former Vista teacher's alleged sexual abuse of a student 30 years ago.

When: 9 a.m. Thursday in San Francisco.

The issue: The court will decide whether a state law extending the time in which childhood sexual abuse lawsuits can be filed against organizations applies to public agencies like school districts, cities and counties.

The effect: The court's decision could expose public agencies to childhood sexual abuse lawsuits similar to those plaguing the Roman Catholic Church today.