Sexual assault allegation prompted protest at Henderson high school

A protest in front of Coronado High School on Friday afternoon was organized by students to express frustration over the handling of allegations of a sexual assault against a classmate, parents at the school said Tuesday.

Three parents and a student, all speaking without providing their names, said Tuesday morning outside the Henderson school that a Coronado pupil has been accused of assaulting a female student off campus.

Rumors of the allegations have spread rapidly amongst the student body, with many not sure what to believe. A student who spoke to the Review-Journal briefly on Tuesday said the protesting students are hoping the individual accused of the assault will be kicked out of the school.

Friday’s protest was mainly about students expressing concerns about safety while voicing their belief that school administrators need to do more, parents said.

“No means no! No means no!” dozens of students chanted in front of the school.

Students also held signs saying “Sexual Assault is Not Okay,” “Rape predates miniskirts” and “Stop Sexualizing Me!”

The Henderson Police Department said in a news release Friday afternoon that it is investigating “possible misconduct allegations” at the school. Police said they also responded to the protest and found “a small number of ‘students’ were on scene, orderly, and obeying all laws.”

“We can also confirm an open investigation into the alleged incident,” police said. “As it is an active and open investigation, we are unable to provide anything further at this time.”

Henderson police denied a records request Monday by the newspaper for an incident report stemming from the sex assault allegation, citing an ongoing investigation.

Clark County School District police referred questions to Henderson police.

In a Friday message from the Clark County School District to Coronado High School families, the district wrote: “We know that students may have concerns about a matter regarding allegations surrounding a private off-campus event.”

“Students have the right to voice their opinions provided that it does not disrupt the educational process and attendance policies are followed as we strive to provide a safe and healthy learning environment for all students,” the district said.

It said the district is cooperating with law enforcement in the investigation.

Contact Glenn Puit by email at gpuit@reviewjournal.com. Follow @GlennatRJ on Twitter.