BELLINGHAM, WA (MyBellinghamNow.com) – Bellingham Public Schools (BPS) has reached a settlement over sexual assaults that occurred on one of their buses.

My Bellingham Now previously reported that the lawsuit was filed in 2024 by the parents of an autistic student at Wade King Elementary School.

They claimed their child was sexually assaulted by a male student on several occasions while they rode the bus in 2023.

Earlier this year, BPS admitted liability to those claims and a judge set a trial date for later this summer.

Court documents state that the exact settlement amount has not yet been determined, but all claims made in the case by all parties have been resolved.

Cascadia Daily News was the first to report on the most recent development.

Local districts see more sexual assault allegations

The same day BPS reached the settlement, a new case was filed against the district in a separate sex assault case.

Court documents state that the family of a deaf child filed the suit Thursday, June 18 against BPS as well as the Blaine School District.

They claim their child was first assaulted on a Blaine school bus when they were in kindergarten.

Another student reported the incident and the perpetrator was removed from the bus route, but the victim’s parents claim the Blaine School District didn’t launch an additional investigation.

The child attended the Salish Sea Deaf School this past academic year, which requires transportation by both Blaine and Bellingham school districts.

On the second day of classes, the student was sexually assaulted again, this time on a Bellingham school bus by a Fairhaven Middle School student. A criminal investigation by Bellingham Police found that the suspect student had assaulted others in the past and was supposed to be on a safety plan before returning to school.

The victim’s parents claim that BPS didn’t launch their own investigation into the incident involving their child.