After student stabbed outside Hoover High, DMPS to settle lawsuit for $5,000

Des Moines Public Schools will pay $5,000 to settle claims by a student who was stabbed during a fight outside Hoover High School.

The March 2022 attack left the student with a severe abdominal laceration requiring medical treatment, according to court filings. In his complaint, he alleged teachers saw other students threatening and trying to fight him inside the school but took no action to separate them or prevent the subsequent encounter. He was wounded in a parking lot outside.

The suit was filed in September 2023, and on April 15, the student filed to permanently dismiss the case. A spokesperson for the district confirmed it had agreed to settle the case for $5,000, paid by its insurer.

Previously: Are Des Moines schools intervening to prevent bullying and fighting? Two lawsuits say no

The student's attorney declined to comment.

The district in November settled for $30,000 a similar lawsuit by the parents of an elementary school student who suffered severe injuries from being shoved into playground equipment by an alleged bully.

William Morris covers courts for the Des Moines Register. He can be contacted at wrmorris2@registermedia.com or 715-573-8166 .

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: After student stabbed outside Hoover High, DMPS to settle lawsuit for $5,000