The family of a teen assaulted by a prominent Iowa high school wrestler has dismissed its lawsuit against the school district as part of a $78,500 settlement.
The 2022 allegations against two-time state champion Kade Blume rocked Roland-Story Community Schools and led to accusations of preferential treatment. Blume and another student were accused of sexually assaulting a boy during a New Year’s Day hazing incident, when Blume was 16.
The Story County Sheriff’s Office charged Blume and another student with sexual assault. Blume initially was charged as an adult but later had his case moved to juvenile court for a guilty plea. The resolution of the case is not public. The other teen was charged as a juvenile.
According to the lawsuit, Blume was not academically suspended and received only a short-term suspension from wrestling, returning to win a weekend invitational barely a month after being charged. The district’s perceived leniency drew an outcry, with one Roland-Story School Board member resigning and another school backing out of a wrestling meet due to Blume’s expected presence.
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Ultimately, the district agreed to bench Blume for the remainder of the 2022-23 season. He returned to competition for his senior year and won a third state championship.
The parents of the victim sued the school district in 2023, accusing officials of dismissing Blume’s misconduct as “boys will be boys” and “locker room horseplay.” They claimed the district did not offer their son any mental health support, made him do a “walk of shame” to explain what happened to all his teachers, and failed to separate Blume from their son.
They eventually moved him to a different school district, and said Roland-Story docked him credits for classes he had nearly completed but was unable to finish online in the wake of the assault. The Des Moines Register is not naming the family because the victim was a minor.
A district representative provided a copy of the settlement agreement but did not have any other comment.
The family’s attorney, Alison Kanne, said in an email they had “reached an agreement with the Roland-Story Community School District after years of fighting. They are looking forward to putting this matter behind them and moving forward together as a family.”
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: Iowa district settles suit from student sexually assaulted by wrestler
