SNOHOMISH COUNTY, Washington — The families of two Snohomish High School girls who were stabbed in one of the school’s bathrooms last fall by a fellow classmate announced Thursday they’re suing the school district and the hospital where the attacker received mental health treatment.
The suit, which is for unspecified damages, alleges that the district and Farifax Hospital didn’t do enough to prevent the attacks.
“This was a preventable tragedy,” said Seattle attorney Sim Osborn, who is representing the victims. “Both the school and Farifax Hospital fell asleep at the wheel when they allowed an unstable person, known to harbor violent impulses, to have free reign on campus.”
The attack happened the morning of October 24. April Lutz, a 14-year-old freshman at the time, was in the bathroom with a friend when a 15-year-old sophomore armed herself with a knife she'd carried to school and went after Lutz, police said.
Lutz suffered more than 20 stab wounds, some of which pierced her heart and lungs, and one of which came within a half-inch of severing an artery and killing her instantly. Doctors said her heart stopped three times during treatment.
Lutz’s friend, who tried to stop the attack, suffered a deep cut on her arm.
Osborn, citing school and medical records, said the 15-year-old admitted to a school counselor in April 2011 that she was having violent fantasies about hurting and killing people. She also threatened to kill a girl’s boyfriend and was expelled from another school.
“Threats like this must be taken seriously, especially when there are multiple threats over a period of time that form a clear pattern,” Osborn said. “Instead, Farifax released this girl after only one week of observation and the school allowed her to resume classes, decisions that paved the way for the horrific attacks.”
The girl pleaded guilty to first-degree attempted murder in March and, per a plea deal with prosecutors, was sentenced to 13 years in prison.
Lawyers for the 15-year-old wrote that the girl was happy and well-adjusted about a year and a half before the attack, but then starting failing classes, listening to music about suicide and torture, dressing in black and taking an interest in Satanism. She began seeing a therapist about twice a month after her mother found out the girl had been cutting herself, KIRO 7 news partner The Daily Herald in Everett reported.
When she was locked up in juvenile detention after the attacks, the girl made what she called a “bucket list” that included violent acts, such as harming a toddler and blowing up a school, according to court documents.