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Two principals at a Delaware high school allegedly used a security camera image of student's breast to create a meme they shared with other staff members, an explosive new lawsuit claims.
"I’m still upset, I’m hurt, disappointed," former Sussex Central High School student Aniya Harmon told NBC News of the alleged incident.
Harmon's family is suing school's principal Bradley Layfield and assistant principal Matthew Jones over an alleged meme that replaced the student's face with Janet Jackson's, an apparent reference to an infamous 2004 Super Bowl incident in which Justin Timberlake exposed the singer's breast during the halftime show.
According to the lawsuit, filed this month in Delaware State Court, Harmon was involved in a May incident in which she witnessed two students, one boy and one girl, arguing in the hallway. When Harmon confronted the apparently irate girl involved in the altercation, the other student "attacked" Harmon, the suit alleges. A school employee then stepped in and pulled Harmon away from the altercation, which allegedly caused part of her clothes to come apart and expose one of her breasts.
Former Sussex Central High School student Aniya Harmon. (The Igwe Firm)
The two administrators then shared the footage with other staff members without blurring the student's breast and used the footage to create the meme and show other school employees, according to the lawsuit. At least six other people had access to the image of the student's breast, the lawsuit claims.
Harmon's attorney, Emeka Igwe, told Fox News Digital the complaint "alleges invasion of privacy, civil conspiracy and intentional infliction of emotional distress."
Tosha White, Harmon's mother, told NBC News word allegedly started spreading throughout the community that the meme existed a few days after the incident.
"I didn’t have any proof that it was my daughter, but all of the facts started to add up," White said.
White said she was called by the district's assistant superintendent eight days later and asked to schedule a meeting but was never told what the meeting would be about. Instead, White hired an attorney. By that time, both Layfield and Jones had been placed on administrative leave, White and her attorney told NBC News. Both are still listed as employees on the school's website.
Sussex Central High School in Delaware. (Google Street View)
Representatives for Sussex Central High School referred a Fox News request for comment to the Indian River School District. A spokesperson for Indian River School District told Fox News Digital that the district "does not comment on pending litigation." Both the school and the district are named in the lawsuit.
Neither Jones nor Layfield immediately responded to a Fox News request for comment. Layfield's attorney, Thomas S. Neuberger, told Fox News Digital his client had "no involvement with" creating the meme that was allegedly circulated, instead arguing that it was Jones who acted on his own to create the image without Layfield's knowledge.
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According to Neuberger, Layfield showed the footage of the fight to multiple people, including state police officers who were at the school. However, Layfield did not notice Harmon's breast was exposed in the footage, the attorney argued, noting that the camera was positioned quite a distance from where the incident took place. Instead, Layfield was following the protocol of investigating the altercation, Neuberger said, and it was only later that the alleged image was created by Jones.
"This looks to be a shakedown designed to force money from the school district," Neuberger told Fox News Digital.
Neuberger said Layfield has long been a respected member of the community and school district and has no previous incidents or trouble, adding the ordeal has caused his client distress and damaged his reputation.
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Layfield has not been able to return to work because of an investigation by the Delaware Department of Education, which has informed him his license may be revoked but has failed to complete its investigation until after the incident is reviewed by police, according to his attorney.
The Delaware State Board told Fox News Digital that it "does not comment on the existence of or details of specific investigations," while the Delaware Department of Justice did not immediately respond to a Fox News request for comment.
A spokesperson for the Delaware State Police confirmed an investigation into a potential crime at Sussex Central High School "in collaboration with the Delaware Department of Justice" but did not provide details of the investigation.
Delaware State Police building (Google Maps)
"Unfortunately, we cannot provide an estimated timeline for the investigation as investigations can often be unpredictable, and it's not uncommon for unexpected developments to arise," the spokesperson said. "The Delaware State Police cannot share any further information at this time. We appreciate everyone's patience during the ongoing investigation."
Harmon has since graduated from the school and started college, though White said the incident continues to cause a great deal of distress for the family.
"I was in shock. I just couldn’t process it right away," White told NBC News. "And then, after the shock came down, it was more anger, hurt, disbelief. So many emotions ... and still to this day. I still have all of the emotions."
Attorneys for Harmon told Fox News Digital the family is hoping for criminal charges to be brought in the case, and they hope the lawsuit deters other administrators from being involved in similar incidents.
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"What happened to Aniya Harmon is outrageous, and we will ensure that those responsible for violating her privacy are held accountable," Igwe told Fox News Digital. "It is reprehensible to think that those we entrust to protect our students would share something so intimate, particularly in a joking manner."
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