The parents of a child who attended the Ottauquechee School in 2012 have sued the Hartford School District, alleging school officials didn’t do enough to keep the boy from being sexually abused and harassed by a kindergarten classmate.

A lawsuit filed on July 20 in U.S. District Court in Brattleboro, Vt., doesn’t identify the family or the boy, instead referring to them as John Doe, Mother Doe and Father Doe, for fear of further psychological damage to the now-8-year-old complainant, according to the lawsuit.

The family’s attorney, Jeff Herman, a Florida-based lawyer who specializes in sexual abuse cases, said in a telephone interview on Monday that Hartford School District leaders, including the superintendent and principal of the school, failed to implement measures to protect the child after the family brought the alleged abuse to their attention.

For example, he said, school officials could have moved the student who was inappropriately touching the boy to another classroom to remedy the situation.

“What we are alleging here is they did everything wrong,” Herman said, “and had they done things appropriately, this child would have been protected.”

Hartford Schools Superintendent Tom DeBalsi on Monday denied the allegations outlined in the 11- page lawsuit.

The family sued on three counts — Title IX, the federal law that bars sex discrimination in education; negligence; and loss of parental consortium — and seek a trial by jury and damages.

“I believe that all school personnel acted appropriately at all times regarding this matter,” said DeBalsi, who declined further comment, citing the pending case.

The district doesn’t yet have a lawyer assigned to the case, nor has it formally responded.

The family is from Florida but moved to Vermont in 2012 so their son could attend a speech therapy program at the University of Vermont, according to the lawsuit. The boy who allegedly abused their son has “severe behavioral issues,” the suit states.

The family returned to Florida after removing their son from the Ottauquechee School during the 2012-13 school year because of “grave concerns” about the boy’s safety, according to the lawsuit.

According to the lawsuit, knowledge of the alleged abuse surfaced in April 2013 when the boy’s mother found a note written by another child that said “top secret” and “meet me at my cubby.”

When she asked her son about the note, the then 5-year-old disclosed the alleged sexual abuse, which included the classmate putting his hands down the boy’s pants in the classroom or the cafeteria, the suit states.

In early May 2013, the boy’s parents brought the alleged abuse to the attention of his classroom teacher, as well as the school’s principal, the suit states.

“At that time, (the principal) advised Mother Doe and Father Doe that (the boy who was allegedly inappropriately touching their son) would be kept separated from ‘John’ at school and would be strictly supervised,” according to court filings.

The next day, the boy disclosed more abuse, according to the suit.

“Despite the promises by (the principal), (he) was not strictly supervised and kept separate from ‘John,’ ” according to the suit. School officials also didn’t report the alleged abuse to the state Department for Children and Families, a requirement, the suit states.

The parents grew frustrated with the district’s response and reached out to Senate President Pro Tempore John Campbell and then-Secretary of Education Armando Vilaseca about the issue, who referred the matter to DeBalsi. In mid-May 2013, the boy’s parents met with DeBalsi, who assigned an aide to shadow the other child.

The harassment continued, however, the lawsuit alleges, and the parents eventually pulled their son from the school.

The boy has suffered physical and psychological injuries from the alleged abuse, the lawsuit states, prompting the family to wait years before filing.

“The family waited to file suit due to the nature of the child’s injuries and the child’s efforts to cope with the trauma, which have been overwhelming for the family,” Herman said through a spokesperson.

Hartford Police Deputy Chief Lenny Roberts said he shows no record of the alleged abuse in the department’s system. Herman, the family’s attorney, confirmed that the family never called police about the alleged sexual abuse. He said the boy’s parents had hoped to solve the problem through the school district.

Herman said the case falls under Title IX, which doesn’t have a capped award for damages.

“If (a public school district) receives notice of a sexual harassment complaint and they don’t take remedial measures to stop it and a child is then later sexually harassed, then the school board is maybe liable under Title IX for civil damages,” Herman said by phone.

The lawsuit outlines a financial award of $75,000, a threshold Herman said is necessary to file the case federally. He said the family is seeking “millions of dollars.”

In 2011, Herman represented a victim of sexual abuse who won a $100 million jury verdict involving a retired Miami priest, according to NBC-Miami.

Jordan Cuddemi can be reached at jcuddemi@vnews.com or 603-727-3248.