Schools face vexing test: Which kids will sexually attack?

Christopher Lee looks through a window secured by bars towards a barbed wire fence surrounding the building from a conference room at the Minnesota Sex Offender Program in St. Peter, Minn., on March 28, 2017. Lee has been in the program since 2005, four days before he turned 19. An ongoing Associated Press investigation has documented how K-12 schools in the United States can fail to protect students in their care from sexual assault, sometimes minimizing or even covering up incidents. Schools also struggle to help sexually aggressive students, both before and after they do lasting harm. (AP Photo/Jim Mone) (The Associated Press)

This undated photo provided by Terry Lee of Hastings, Minn., shows his son, Christopher, as a child. Since 2005, four days before he turned 19, he has been locked up in the Minnesota Sex Offender Program. When Lee first arrived, he was too angry to accept treatment. He has since made substantial progress, according to notes made by his primary therapist, but still may lash out when upset. (Courtesy of Terry Lee via AP) (The Associated Press)

Christopher Lee poses for a photo in a conference room at the Minnesota Sex Offender Program in St. Peter, Minn., on March 28, 2017. According to his case file, parts of which were released to AP with Lee’s permission, family members abused him mentally and physically, though not sexually. Growing up, Lee said he desperately sought connections but was too needy to keep friends and became a target for bullying. Lee said he channeled his aggression toward sex starting at 10, after a 12-year-old cousin who usually ignored him invited him under the covers. The girl undressed, then got on top of Lee. Someone came to the bedroom door and they stopped. (AP Photo/Jim Mone) (The Associated Press)

Thousands of school-age offenders are disciplined or treated for sexual aggression each year in the United States.

The Associated Press sought to understand who they are, and why they assault.

Therapists say there is no typical attacker: It could be the popular jock, the quiet loner, or anyone in between. And experts say they cannot reliably predict who might harm a classmate. What count as potential warning signs — such as social isolation or a student who disrespects personal boundaries — can mean many things other than an impending sex assault.

Therapists describe motivations that are rarely as straightforward as physical gratification.

Schools struggle both to monitor and help sexually aggressive students.

The good news: Therapy and a support network can speed recovery, if the offender is open to it.

___

If you have a tip, comment or story to share about student-on-student sexual assault at K-12 schools, please email: schoolhousesexassault@ap.org