By Khalida Sarwari
Amid recent allegations made by a lawyer for one of the teenage boys accused of being responsible for 15-year-old Audrie Pott’s suicide, an attorney for the Pott family indicated last week that they would proceed with a wrongful death lawsuit against Audrie’s three alleged attackers.
Covered widely in the media, the allegations against the family were made in court papers filed in December by lawyer Philip Pereira. Some of the claims made in the court filing cast suspicion on whether Larry Pott is Audrie’s biological father and shifted some blame onto Audrie’s parents.
Pereira could not be reached for comment.
Speaking on behalf of the Pott family, attorney Robert Allard issued a statement in response to these claims wherein he said the family would proceed with a wrongful death lawsuit filed in Santa Clara County Superior Court last April against Audrie’s three attackers, their parents, a girl who is alleged to have assisted the boys before and after the assault, and Michael and Sheila Penuen, the owners of the home where the assault took place.
“The sole issue in this case is the callous behavior of the suspects which directly led to Audrie’s unnecessary death,” Allard said in the statement. “Since this lawsuit was filed, it has become quite clear to us that the suspects refuse to accept responsibility or show remorse for their actions.”
Allard said the family is also working with state legislators such as Sen. Jim Beall to advocate for bills that could prevent future such tragedies.
“We otherwise have no intention at this time to dignify any of the recent allegations made by a defense attorney in a revolting attempt to deflect responsibility away from his clients,” Allard said. “This case is and will always be about the tragic consequences associated with sexual assault and cyber bullying.”
The wrongful death lawsuit claims the boys sexually assaulted an intoxicated and unconscious Audrie at a 2012 Labor Day weekend party while they were sober and then texted at least one photo of the attack to other students in the school. The boys, schoolmates that Audrie had considered her friends, are accused of using a marker to draw on and write sexually explicit messages on her body. Audrie hanged herself a week later.
The boys were arrested on April 11, 2013. After a stint in juvenile hall, they were placed on house arrest as they face criminal charges of sexual battery and distribution of child pornography in connection with the case. Authorities are not releasing their names because they are minors and are being tried as juveniles.
‘Revolting’ attack does not deter Pott family from moving forward
