Los Altos High School Assistant Principal Kristin Castillo has been placed on paid administrative leave after a lawsuit accused her of grooming and sexually abusing a student nearly two decades ago while she was a teacher and coach at Santa Clara High School. The Mountain View-Los Altos Union High School District says it learned of the allegations for the first time on August 11, when it immediately removed Castillo from her duties.
The civil complaint, filed August 3, identifies the plaintiff only by the pseudonym ML Doe and alleges that Castillo's unlawful sexual conduct began around 2006 and continued throughout the student's four years at Santa Clara High School, according to The Talon, which first reported the lawsuit and Castillo's leave. The suit alleges sexual touching, contact and conduct involving the victim, and claims the student and Castillo were inappropriately allowed to be alone together, according to the Mountain View Voice. It seeks damages for sexual harassment, abuse in an educational setting, and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
Who Is Named in the Lawsuit
Attorney Morgan A. Stewart of the law firm Manly, Stewart, Finaldi & Thom represents the plaintiff and named both Castillo and the Santa Clara Unified School District as defendants, along with Jane Does 1-100, per the Mountain View Voice's reporting. Stewart said Santa Clara Unified's mistake exposed students to a predator, according to the same account. The plaintiff also alleges that Santa Clara Unified and others knew of Castillo's actions and did nothing to prevent the abuse, per the lawsuit.
Castillo worked for Santa Clara Unified School District from 2004 to 2014, serving as a math teacher at Santa Clara High School and coaching the girls' volleyball and basketball teams during the 2005-2006 school year, the Voice reports. Santa Clara Unified Deputy Superintendent Mark Schiel refused to comment on the ongoing litigation.
A District Blindsided by the Allegations
MVLA Associate Superintendent Leyla Benson told the Talon that district administration was first notified of the lawsuit on August 11 and had no prior knowledge or suspicion of the 2006 allegations. Castillo remains employed by MVLA while on paid leave but is barred from performing job duties or entering any district facility, per the Talon's reporting.
Benson declined to say whether Castillo was placed on leave specifically because of the lawsuit's allegations, and she also declined to say whether Castillo worked with students in a close capacity, according to the Voice. Benson said the district investigates all student concerns and complaints received, and could not verify whether MVLA had received any reports of sexual harassment involving Castillo since she joined in 2016. “Student safety” is something the district takes seriously, Benson said, per the Voice's account.
Castillo's Rise Through MVLA
Castillo joined MVLA in 2016 as Student Services Coordinator at Los Altos High School, a non-disciplinary role specifically created to focus on student health and wellness, according to a 2016 profile from The Talon. She was appointed assistant principal in 2022. Castillo did not provide comment despite multiple attempts by the Voice to reach her.
The lawsuit also surfaces an earlier chapter of Castillo's tenure at Santa Clara High School. In September 2013, while working as a math teacher there, Castillo was assigned to take over senior AVID classes after another math teacher at the school was arrested on minor sexual abuse charges following a police investigation, according to The Roar.
A Statewide Reckoning Over Historic Abuse Claims
The lawsuit is possible because of Assembly Bill 218, a 2019 amendment to California Code of Civil Procedure § 340.1 that lets victims of childhood sexual assault file civil suits up to age 40 or within five years of discovering a connected adult psychological injury, per the California School Boards Association. Childhood sexual abuse lawsuits have cost California schools approximately $3 billion, according to the Legal Examiner, citing CalMatters. Average payouts in similar cases range between $5 million and $10 million, according to the Legal Examiner, citing FCMAT.
Proposals to change AB 218 have also been discussed amid California's debate over school sexual abuse lawsuits.
MVLA's Scale and What Comes Next
MVLA serves roughly 4,450 students across Los Altos High, Mountain View High and Alta Vista High, operating on a $150.2 million general revenue budget for the 2025-2026 school year, as previously reported by Hoodline. The lawsuit remains a civil allegation, not a criminal charge or a finding of guilt, and both Castillo's employment status and the litigation against Santa Clara Unified remain pending.
