Mallory Grossman's parents reach $9.1M settlement with NJ school district in bullying case
The Rockaway Township School District in Morris County has agreed to pay $9.1 million to the parents of Mallory Grossman, the 12-year-old whose death by suicide in 2017 sparked a national debate about bullying and prompted new legislation in New Jersey.
The settlement, announced Wednesday, marks the largest-ever payout in a bullying case in the state, according to Bruce Nagel of Nagel Rice in Roseland, who represented the family.
The sixth grader at Copeland Middle School took her life on June 14, 2017, after enduring “relentless” bullying by her classmates, said her parents, Dianne and Seth Grossman, who filed suit later that year against Rockaway Township, its school district and school administrators, saying they had failed to protect their daughter.
Despite repeated pleas to school authorities, the bullying persisted, the Grossmans said.
“Seth and I are satisfied with the settlement, ready to put this part behind us and move forward, continuing to lend our voice to the epidemic that is stealing our children’s future,” Dianne Grossman said Wednesday.
Mallory's death spurred debate on bullying that led to New Jersey's passage in 2022 of Mallory's Law, which imposed new requirements on schools in the state to report and act on bullying complaints.
In the aftermath of her death, the girl's parents also founded Mallory's Army, a nonprofit organization dedicated to educating parents and school administrators about the dangers of bullying. The family also produced the documentary "Mallory" in 2020.
"This settlement is one more step in dealing with this avoidable tragedy, and I hope that it sends a clear message to all schools around the country that our children must be protected from the horrors of school bullying,” Nagel said.
More: Anti-bullying advocate will shift tactics after another NJ girl’s bullying-triggered death
At the time the suit was filed, the Rockaway Township district said it was “committed to protecting” students. It denied allegations that it hadn’t done enough to stop the harassment, calling the claims "categorically false.” Then-Superintendent Greg McGann resigned on July 1, 2018.
Current Superintendent Richard R. Corbett did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday.
Lawsuit details years of bullying
The Grossmans' lawsuit said Mallory suffered for months at the hands of a group of fellow middle-schoolers. One allegedly texted the girl a picture of herself walking alone with the words "you have no friends." Another asked her "when are you going to kill yourself?" in front of other students, the suit said. Eventually, the family alleged, the stream of texts and online posts left Mallory "ostracized" from the rest of her classmates.
Dianne Grossman said she watched her daughter’s grades plummet while repeated pleas to school officials for help went ignored.
At one point, Grossman said, she called the mother of one of the bullying classmates, only to be told that the taunting was just a joke and not to worry.
But it was no joke, Nagel said at a 2017 news conference announcing the lawsuit.
"Her life tragically ended when her own classmates used this cellphone to drive her into this," Nagel said, holding aloft a black iPhone.
Is progress being made?
Progress has been made since Mallory's Army was formed, said Stuart Green, founder and director of the New Jersey Coalition for Bullying Awareness and Prevention. But gaps remain in current anti-bullying laws, he said.
School administrators who fail to adequately address problems need to face more consequences, Green said. And schools need stronger peer mentorship programs and a more proactive attitude about addressing social and emotional issues among students.
“We're getting somewhere because there's more awareness," Green said. "As far as the $9.1 million settlement, Dianne Grossman is a remarkable leader on this issue. This is a good thing. It's a tremendous encouragement for schools and school districts and the education organizations to pay more attention to this issue and take stronger action to protect and support vulnerable kids."
Gene Myers covers disability and mental health for NorthJersey.com and the USA TODAY Network. For unlimited access to the most important news from your local community, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.
Email: myers@northjersey.com
Twitter: @myersgene
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Mallory Grossman parents settle bullying lawsuit for $9.1 million
