Former Los Angeles Lakers player and coach Byron Scott is facing a lawsuit alleging he sexually assaulted a 15-year-old girl in 1987 during a team event at her high school. The suit, which was initially filed in December 2022 and received a recent amendment to include Scott's name publicly, claims sexual battery and false imprisonment occurred during a Lakers' visit to Campbell Hall High School in Studio City, NBC Los Angeles has reported.
According to the FOX LA report, the plaintiff, who was attending summer classes at the high school, alleges that the assault took place in a locked janitor's closet. Scott, then 26 and in his fourth season with the Lakers, was at the school to film an instructional basketball video and meet with the school community. Scott's attorney, Linda Bauermeister, stated that her client believed the accuser was of legal age at the time and respects girls and women, and the claims have blindsided him and his family.
Legal representatives for the plaintiff have named both Scott and Campbell Hall High School in the suit, arguing the school failed to safeguard the student during the team's event. A judge decided last August that Scott's identity could be revealed in the litigation. The lawsuit is claiming damages of over $25,000, including lost earnings and attorney fees, to be paid by Scott and the school, as AP News detailed.
The case takes advantage of recent changes in California law, as reported by PEOPLE, that allow older allegations involving underage plaintiffs to be filed, extending the statute of limitations for such cases until victims' 40th birthdays. In a statement obtained by PEOPLE, the attorney for the plaintiff, Kerry Garvis Wright, mentioned, "Hayley has courageously named Byron Scott for sexually assaulting her when she was just 15 years-old and Campbell Hall School for failing to protect her while on its campus."
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