Williams ex rel. Williams v. Fulton County School District (181 F. Supp. 3d 1089, 2016)

ORDER

Amy Totenberg, United States District Judge

Alex Williams is a young man with disabilities who was born with hydrocephalus, hemiparesis, cerebral palsy, moderate to severe intellectual disabilities, motor and language impairment, and who has a history of seizures. (Compl. ¶ l.) Alex allegedly suffered horrific abuse at the hands of his special education teacher, Melanie Pickens, while enrolled at Hopewell Middle School during the 2006-2007 school year. Alex’s counsel filed a 176-page Complaint with 23 counts against the Fulton County School District (“FCSD”) and 28 individuals, including Pickens. With his parents (together, “Plaintiffs”), he brings claims under the United States and Georgia constitutions and 42 U.S.C. § 1983, the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”), 42 U.S.C. § 12101 et seq., Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act (“Section 504”), 29 U.S.C. § 701 et seq., and under a variety of state law tort theories.

This case is frustrating and saddening for the Court for a number of reasons. The pleadings allege a series of shocking abuses visited upon Alex and other disabled students at Hopewell’s “G-Hall,” where classrooms for disabled students were located. Alex also alleges a pattern of institutional neglect and indifference to Pick-ens’ alleged abuse that, if substantiated in discovery, would be terrible in its own right. And so this case presents important issues for all parties. For Alex, he has a strong interest in attempting to obtain some remedy for the alleged constant victimization that he suffered for an entire school year. For the Defendants, they have an obvious interest in trying to clear then-names. Under any circumstances, the resolution of the issues posed by this case would be difficult. The presentation of this matter—in the form of a massive Complaint that pleads substantial factual material but in a scattershot fashion—has made that task" even more difficult.

As a final preliminary note, every lawyer must help his or her client weigh the proper balance between, on the one hand, fully vindicating the client’s rights, and on the other, reaching an expeditious resolution of a matter. As wili be discussed below, the Court is declining to dismiss a significant number of individual Defendants at this stage, because it is constrained to do so. The Federal Rules permit a generous pleading standard, and the applicable law suggests that Plaintiffs have, with respect to many of the Defendants, met that standard. But this by no means suggests that all of the claims that survive this Order will necessarily survive summary judgment too. For example, the case law makes plain that while it is not particularly difficult to allege a Monell claim against a school district, it is often difficult to prove it. The same holds true for individuals who are being sued in their supervisory capacity, or under a conspiracy theory of liability. Plaintiffs can prosecute their case how they like. But in the Court’s view, this case would benefit greatly from some self-editing. Plaintiffs may decline to do so—but if that is the case, then they may wait a very long time for a resolution to this undoubtedly painful matter. That would be a disservice to all involved.

I. Summary op the Order

Pending before the Court are three motions. The Fulton County School District and all individual Defendants except Ms. Boyd and Ms. Pickens (hereinafter referred to as the “Individual Defendants”) filed a Motion to Dismiss the Second Amended Complaint [Doc. 87] (“FCSD’s Motion”). Ms. Boyd also filed a separate Motion to Dismiss [Doc. 101], and Ms. Pickens filed a Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings [Doc. 104]. Plaintiffs have indicated that they have reached a settlement with Pickens. The Court therefore DENIES WITHOUT PREJUDICE Pick-ens’ Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings [Doc. 104], and addresses the remaining motions in the following order:

The Court addresses the issues raised in the remaining motions in the following order: (1) FCSD’s motion as to the issue of municipal liability; (2) Boyd’s motion as to the issues of supervisory liability and qualified immunity; (3) the individual substantive claims; (4) official immunity as to the Individual Defendants and Boyd; (5) the § 1983 conspiracy claims; and (6) supervisory liability and negligent hiring and supervision claims against the Individual Defendants.

The Court provides the following summary to aid the Parties’ understanding of the Order’s determination of the various issues raised by Defendants in response to Plaintiffs’ Complaint:

1. Melanie Pickens’ Motion [Doc. 104] is DENIED WITHOUT PREJUDICE as MOOT.

2. Frances Boyd’s Motion [Doc. 101] is GRANTED in part and DENIED in part. Plaintiffs’ ADA and Section 504 claims under the Rehabilitation Act, and their Fourth Amendment and cruel and unusual punishment claims, and their negligent hiring claims are all DISMISSED. Thus, the following claims remain pending against Boyd:

• the § 1983 claims for substantive and procedural due- process and equal protection violations (under supervisory liability);

• the § 1983 conspiracy claims for substantive and procedural due process and equal protection violation;

• the Georgia constitutional claims for substantive and procedural due process and equal protection violations (under supervisory or conspiracy liability); and

• and the state law conspiracy claims to commit the torts identified in Counts 2 through 10, and the state law negligent supervision claim.

3.-FCSD’s Motion [Doc. 87] is GRANT-

ED in part and DENIED in part. Plaintiffs’ Fourth Amendment and cruel and unusual punishment claims against FCSD are all DISMISSED. The following claims remain pending against FCSD:

• the § 1983 claims for substantive and procedural due process and equal protection violations;

• the § 1983 conspiracy claims for substantive and ' procedural due process and equal protection violations;

• the Georgia constitutional claims for substantive and procedural due. process and equal protection violations;

• the ADA and Section 504 claims; and

• the attorneys’ fees claim.

4. The Individual Defendants’ Motion [Doc. 87] is GRANTED in part and DENIED in part as follows:

• All claims against Defendants Etris, Butler, Averett, White, McGee, and Sosebee are DISMISSED.

• All claims against McConnell, Pettes, Shelley, Faulkner, Wadel, and Ware except Plaintiffs’ claims under § 1983 for supervisory liability for violations of Plaintiffs’ substantive and procedural due process and equal protection rights are DISMISSED.

• All claims against Beasley, Schuette, Wilson, Weinmann, Kanner, and Wade except Plaintiffs’ § 1983 conspiracy claims to violate Plaintiffs’ substantive and procedural due process and equal protection rights are DISMISSED.

• All claims against Merritt, Denmark, Lynch, Thompson, Shaffer, Vanairsdale, Reece, and Young except Plaintiffs’ §. 1983 claim for supervisory liability and conspiracy liability, for violations of Plaintiffs’ substantive and procedural due process and equal protection rights are DISMISSED.

5.In sum, the following claims remain pending against the specified Defendants:

a. § 1983 substantive and procedural due procéss and equal protection claims via municipal liability: FCSD.;

b. § 1983 substantive and procedural due process and equal protection claims via supervisory liability: Boyd, Merritt, Denmark, Lynch, Thompson, McConnell, Wadel, Shaffer, Vanairsdale, Reece, Young, Pettes, Shelley, Faulkner, and Ware;

c. § 1983 substantive and procedural due process and equal protection claims via conspiracy liability: Boyd, Kanner, Weinraann, Beasley, Schuette, Wilson, Wade, Merritt, Denmark, Lynch, Thompson, Shaffer, Vanairsdale, Reece, Young, and FCSD;

d. Substantive and procedural due process and equal protection claims under the Georgia constitution: FCSD and Boyd;

e. State law tort claims: Boyd (under a conspiracy theory of liability);

f. State law negligent supervision claim: Boyd;

g. ADA and Section 504 claims: FCSD; and

h. Attorneys’ fees under the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act (“IDEA”): FCSD.

II. Legal Standards

This Court may dismiss a pleading for “failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(6). A pleading fails to state a claim if it does not contain allegations that support recovery under any recognizable legal theory. 5 Charles Aan Wright & Arthur R. Miller, Federal Practice & Procedure § 1216 (3d ed.2002); see also Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 677-78, 129 S.Ct. 1937, 173 L.Ed.2d 868 (2009). In considering a Rule 12(b)(6) motion, the Court construes the pleading in the non-movant’s favor and accepts the well-pleaded factual allegations therein as true. See Duke v. Cleland, 5 F.3d 1399, 1402 (11th Cir.1993). The plaintiff need not have provided “detailed factual allegations” to survive dismissal, but the “obligation to provide the ‘grounds’ of his ‘entitle[ment] to relief requires more than labels and conclusions, and a formulaic recitation of the elements of a cause of action will not do.” Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 555, 127 S.Ct. 1955, 167 L.Ed.2d 929 (2007). In essence, the pleading “must contain sufficient factual matter, accepted as true, to ‘state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face.’” Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 678, 129 S.Ct. 1937 (quoting Twombly, 550 U.S. at 570, 127 S.Ct. 1955). “A well-pleaded complaint may proceed even if it strikes a savvy judge that actual proof of the facts alleged is improbable.” Twom-bly at 556, 127 S.Ct. 1955. But the allegations must still be “plausible.” Id. at 547, 127 S.Ct. 1955.

III. Background

Aex Williams is a young man with cerebral palsy, severe intellectual disabilities, and motor and language impairment. (Compl. ¶ 1.) Aex was born with “hydrocephalus, a mid-brain abnormality that prevents spinal fluid from draining away from the brain. He also has a history of seizures, and is significantly developmentally delayed.” (Final Decision ¶ 1.) On a 2010 psycho-educational evaluation, Aex earned “a full-scale IQ score of 40.” (Id.) And Aex has very limited verbal communication skills. (See id. ¶ 15.) Athough he is able to walk independently, he does so slowly and with a significant gait, has some difficulties in maintaining balance and stability, and occasionally falls. (Id. ¶¶ 31, 45-46.)

All told, Alex's disabilities “substantially limited most, if not all, of his major life activities, including ... - his ability to learn, care for himself, perform daily living skills, complete any motor tasks with skill or speed, walk, speak, work, follow directions, and comprehend.” (Compl. ¶ 152.) At the times relevant to the Complaint, Alex “could not dress himself, could not bathe himself independently ,.. could not prepare food for himself ... could not pour himself a glass of liquid ... could not use the toilet independently, [ ] could not write, [and] could not read.” (Id. ¶ 153.)

Alex was a student at Hopewell Middle School during the 2006-07 school year, where his teacher was Melanie Pickens. {Id. ¶26.) Pickens allegedly had a long history of abusing students, even before Alex arrived in her classroom, which the Court discusses next in order to give an overview of the events that led to this lawsuit. (See generally Compl.)

The 2002 Abuse Allegations

Ms. Pickens began working for FCSD in 2002 as a special education teacher for moderately, severely, and profoundly disabled students at Holcomb Bridge Middle School. {Id. ¶ 172.) Pickens was not certified to be a lead teacher of middle school children with significant mental impairments. (Compl. ¶ 411.) Shortly after Pick-ens began teaching at Holcomb Bridge, she started “hitting, yanking, shoving, and screaming” at her students, and called them names. {Id. ¶ 174.) She also abandoned them .in “time out” rooms with the lights out. {Id.; see also Final Decision ¶ 20.) Pickens’ misconduct was noticed early on by FCSD staff. Dorothy Pettes, a Special Education Coordinator who supervised special education teachers at a number of middle schools in the District, began receiving reports about Pickens in 2002 from teachers and paraprofessionals. (Id. 11413.) Pettes, in turn, reported this conduct to several FCSD employees, including Emmett Shaffer, the principal of Holcomb Bridge, Nancy Shelley, the Executive Director for FCSD Services for Exceptional Children, Sharon Etris, the Instructional Support Teacher (“1ST”) at Holcomb Bridge; Donna Faulkner, the FCSD 1ST for students with moderate and severe mental impairments, and Sharon Butler, a Behavior Interventionist. (Compl. ¶¶ 396, 414.)

Some of these individuals allegedly knew of Pickens’ abuse from sources other than Pettes. For example, Butler witnessed at least some of this conduct firsthand, and knew that Pickens was restraining, isolating, and abandoning disabled students while at Holcomb Bridge. (Compl. ¶239.) And Etris “received numerous reports of abuse” from August 2002 to .May 2004. (Compl. ¶ 188.)

In response to Pickens’ alleged misconduct, Pettes and Faulkner arranged for Pickens to receive support and training during her time at Holcomb Bridge. Faulkner provided some of this instruction herself, sharing with Pickens teaching strategies, behavior management programming, and data collection techniques. (Compl. ¶ 201; Final Decision ¶ 20.) In addition, Butler informed Pickens that she was not permitted to physically punish or restrain children. (Compl. ¶ 238.) However, Pickens failed to respond to her training, and instead continued to be “abusive and excessively physically punitive” towards her students. (Compl. ¶206.) Faulkner, Pettes, and Butler were all aware that Pickens had failed to change her ways despite receiving corrective training. (Id. ¶¶ 207, 240.)

Pettes therefore recommended in 2003 that Pickens’ contract not be renewed at the end of her first year. (Compl. ¶¶ 201, 415; Final Decision ¶ 20.) However, Principal Shaffer informed Pettes that the decision to retain Pickens was a “personnel matter,” and that Pickens would stay on at Holcomb Bridge. (Ids.) None of the above-named individuals reported Pickens’ 2002 conduct to the police or other state authorities at the time that it happened. And all indications suggest (and the Complaint pleads) that Pickens continued abusing students for the remainder of her time at Holcomb Bridge. (Compl. ¶¶396, 399) (alleging that Pettes reported that Pickens was abusing her students “multiple times between 2002 and 2004.”)

The November 2004 Abuse Allegations

Despite her repeated misconduct, Pick-ens was transferred from Holcomb Bridge to Hopewell Middle School in the fall of 2004. (Compl. ¶ 255.) Prior to this transfer, Pettes informed Frances Boyd, the principal of Hopewell, that Pickens had a history of “ongoing issues” related to her “mistreatment and rough treatment” of her significantly disabled students, (Id.) Nonetheless, Pickens was assigned to teach a special education class on G Hall, a segregated hallway where only disabled children were located. (Id. ¶ 256.)

Pickens began abusing her new Hopewell students almost immediately after arriving, (Id. ¶ 258.) By September of 2004, Boyd was informed by at least one Hopewell employee that Pickens was “abusing and excessively ... punishing” her significantly mentally impaired students. (Id.) Then, in November of 2004,- a FCSD school nurse named Judy Reddick report-' ed to Principal Boyd and Paula Merritt, Hopewell’s Special Education 1ST, that she had witnessed Pickens frequently strike her student Jake Marshall hard on the head with an open hand, spray Lysol on another student, Repheka Persadi, and repeatedly call her students “little shits” and “little fuckers.” (Id. ¶ 259; Final Decision at ¶¶ 21-22.) Boyd had also received reports by this time that - Pickens was pressing her buttocks and breasts in disabled children’s faces. (Compl. ¶ 112.)

Reddick initially met with Principal Boyd about what she had seen, but Boyd “did not appear to believe her.” (Final Decision ¶ 23; see Compl. ¶272.) Reddick then reported the abuse to her supervisor, Lynn Meadows, who in turn reported Pick-ens to FCSD’s internal social worker department. (Id. ¶ 244.) Boyd informed Red-dick she was displeased that Reddick had gone to Meadows rather than keep the matter in-house. (See Compl. ¶ 272.)

FCSD then assigned Stephanie Schuette, a social worker, to investigate the report(s) of abuse. (Compl. ¶342.) However, according to Plaintiffs, Schuette’s investigation was tainted almost from the start. Plaintiffs allege that Boyd invited Michael Vanairsdale, the Superintendent of FCSD, Vicki Denmark, the FCSD Area Superintendent with responsibility for Hopewell, Ralph Lynch, the FCSD Interim Superintendent and Director of Secondary Personnel, J. Randall Reece, the FCSD Chief Human Resources Officer, and Lance Young, the FCSD Human Resources Administrator, into the investigative process. Together, these senior FCSD officials allegedly predetermined that Pickens’ abuse “would not be reported” to the Georgia Department of Family and Child Services, the police, or the Georgia Public School Commission. (Compl. ¶¶ 245-246.)

These officials allegedly communicated this decision to Schuette’s supervisor, Harvey Beasley, the director of FCSD social work services. (Compl. ¶¶ 385, 387.) Beasley, “[ajcting in agreement with Vanairs-dale, Reece, Young, Boyd, Lynch, and Denmark,” consequently “violated his department’s protocol and usual policy and practice” and instructed Schuette to conclude that what Pickens had done to her students in the fall of 2004 was not abuse. (Id ¶ 388, 389, 392.)

Schuette’s investigation was minimal as a result. She began the investigation on November 18, concluded it on November 19, only interviewed Pickens herself, and did not take statements from any other witnesses. (Compl, ¶¶345, 352.) Schuette then prepared an Investigative Report, but altered her original draft and made a finding of “no abuse” on November 22, 2004, after receiving Beasley’s directions. (Compl. ¶¶ 348, 352.) And Schuette omitted facts that were reported to her, including that Pickens was allegedly slapping a student’s hands and restraining him in a room alone. In the end, Schuette characterized Pickens’ conduct as “poor choices and discipline strategies.” (Compl. ¶359.)

Ultimately, Vainarsdale, Boyd, Lynch, Denmark, Young, and Reece all allegedly elected to retain Pickens, and allowed her to stay in the classroom without any real corrective action. (E.g,, Id. ¶¶225, 247.) According to the Complaint, at least 13 individuals, including Boyd, Vanairsdale, Lynch, Denmark, Young, Reece, Merritt, Beasley, Schuette, Pettes, Shelley, William Thompson (a Hopewell assistant principal), and Kenneth McGee, another FCSD social worker, were allegedly aware of the content of the reports at the time of -the investigation—including the nature of the abuse allegations. (E.g., Compl. ¶ 225.)

The Abuse Allegedly Continues After the 2004 Report

Pickens’ abusive conduct towards her students allegedly “continued unabated,” after she faced no consequences for the November 2004 incidents. (See Final Decision ¶ 24.) Principal Bóyd and Merritt, in particular, continued receiving regular reports of abuse during the 2004-05 and 2005-06 school years. (Compl. ¶¶ 285; 319, 332, 443, 447) (Merritt was aware in May 2005 of “significant problems of child abuse in Pickens’ class.”) For example, in January 2006, a FCSD nurse named Terri Goodman reported to Boyd that Pickens had (1) told one disabled child that his mother was a “crack-head,” and (2) “jacked up” another child by pushing him or her into a hard surface and then lifting his or her feet off the floor. (Compl. ¶¶ 280, 461; Final Decision ¶¶ 24-25.) The Administrative Law Judge observed that “[t]hese were just two of many reports made by staff at Hopewell to either [Merritt] or to Boyd about Pickens’ conduct” between 2004 and 2006. (Final Decision ¶ 26.)

The Complaint and Final Decision detail several other reports of Pickens’ abuse. According to Clarenda Baugh, a paraprofessional who worked in Pickens’ classroom, it was “common knowledge on G-Hall that Pickens was abusing students, and the abuse was happening ‘pretty much’ on a daily basis.” (Final Decision ¶ 26.)

Sara Ware, a FCSD Special Education Coordinator, was informed that “during one of the [summer] ESY programs from 2003 to 2006,” Pickens squeezed the penis of a disabled child so hard that it gave the student a penile embolism, but Ware allegedly never passed this information on. (Compl. ¶ 437.)

Templyn Averett, a Hopewell special education teacher and co-chair of the Hopewell special education department from 2004 through 2006, witnessed Pickens “kick, hit, slap, push, shove, jack up, and knee one or more students; scream and curse at students; and restrain, isolate, and abandon students.” (Id. ¶ 441.) Averett reported this abuse to both the 1ST Merritt and to Principal Boyd, but did not report it to any other person in a position of authority. (Id. ¶ 444.)

Another special education teacher, Stacy White, witnessed Pickens’ abuse of students “shortly after” she arrived at Hopewell in August 2005, and reported it to Averett. (Id. ¶ 450.) Specifically,‘White saw Pickens hit one student “many, many times,” saw Pickens push students up against the wall face-first, lift them off the floor, and shove them to the ground, and saw Pickens restrain and abandon a student for up to four hours a day, repeatedly. (Id. ¶¶ 459-68.) White reported at least some of this abuse to Averett and Pettes. (Id. ¶¶ 452, 457.) When paraprofessionals or other school employees complained to White about Pickens’ conduct, she told them it was being addressed by the school administration. (Id. ¶¶ 452-53.)

Sara Sosebee, a FCSD special education teacher, allegedly befriended Pickens despite knowing that Pickens “kick[ed], knee[d], hit, slapped, push[ed] and shove[d]” students. According to Plaintiffs, Sosebee knew of Pickens’ abusive tendencies when she recommended that Alex be placed with Pickens at Hopewell, and intentionally concealed that fact. (Id. ¶ 475.)

Defendant Kenneth McGee, a FCSD social worker, also received reports of abuse (though there are no allegations he witnessed it firsthand), and discussed these reports with Boyd. However, he too never pushed it up the ladder. (Id. ¶¶ 484-485.)

And Pettes, who continued to “repeatedly” receive reports of Pickens’ abuse, “expressed the Hopewell’s staffs concerns about Pickensf] abuse and excessive punishment of her students to Boyd every time she was at Hopewell and Boyd was in the building.” (Compl. ¶ 430.)

Principal Boyd’s Role in Pickens’ Ongoing Abuse

Just like at Holcomb Bridge, and just like in 2004, nothing happened to Pickens in 2005 or 2006. The Complaint suggests that much of the reason for that lies with Principal Boyd. The Complaint alleges facts that, if true, suggest that Principal Boyd knew Pickens was repeatedly abusing children during this time.

Boyd received reports from bus drivers, parents of non-disabled children, at least two paraprofessionals, a FCSD nurse, at least one teacher, and a janitor who witnessed abuse or other improper conduct by Pickens against disabled students. (Compl. ¶ 264.) All told, Boyd received at least 10 detailed reports of abuse between August 2004 and August 2006. (Id. ¶ 112.)

And Boyd had “numerous conversations with Pettes and Merritt about Pickens’ “physical and verbal improper acts [against] significantly disabled children.” (Compl. ¶¶ 262-63.) Boyd also e-mailed Pickens at least twice in November of 2006, informing Pickens she was “not to use physical force to make [one of her student’s] comply” with a request, and emailed Pickens, Merritt, and others about an incident where a parent witnessed a teacher (apparently Pickens) dragging a student down the hallway by their coat.” (Id. ¶¶ 296-97.) The Complaint alleges that Boyd knew she had a problem. For example, when a school nurse went to Boyd to report Pickens, Boyd asked, “Now what has Melanie [Pickens] - done?” before the nurse mentioned Pickens’ name. (Id. ¶ 284.)

Instead of remedying this situation, Boyd allegedly cultivated an “atmosphere of intimidation” at Hopewell that discouraged reporting abuse, with the result that “many of the educators and staff were afraid they would lose.their jobs if they continued to make reports about Pickens.” (Final Decision ¶ 27; Compl. ¶¶ 271-276.) Boyd allegedly fomented this atmosphere in a few ways.

First, Boyd did little to nothing in response to reports of abuse. The Administrative Law Judge found that Boyd would respond to verbal reports by taking no action and stating, “[i]f it’s not in writing, it didn’t happen.” (Final Decision ¶ 27.) Alternatively, Boyd would falsely inform individuals who reported Pickens that the matter was being handled internally, and that Boyd was “tak[ing] care of it ... [and] doing what I’m supposed to be doing.” (Id. ¶ 26.) And Boyd instructed Merritt that any parent who inquired about Pickens’ behavior towards disabled students was to be told that the matter was being addressed by the administration. (Final Decision ¶26; Compl. ¶¶267, 270.) Pettes testified at the due process hearing that staff “kept reporting [abuse to Boyd and others] and they felt nothing was getting done.” (Final Decision ¶ 26.)

Worse, Boyd “appeared to be protective of Pickens.” (Final Decision ¶ 27.) She informed Pickens when individuals had reported her, and stated to Pickens “I’m so sorry. It looks like they’re picking on you again,” after receiving one verbal report from an educator. (Compl. ¶ 275; Final Decision ¶ 27.) Boyd allegedly told Reddick in 2004 that she was displeased that Reddick had reported Pickens, and subsequently informed Reddick that she did not want her at Hopewell any longer. (Compl. ¶ 273.) And Boyd informed a janitor who had reported witnessing abuse that the janitor was “never [to] call a parent about the mistreatment of a student,” and copied the janitor’s supervisor on a letter reiterating that point. (Id. ¶276.) Finally, Boyd allegedly did ask for a written report on a few occasions, but then destroyed. it. (Compl. ¶ 291.)

Plaintiffs’ allegations, if true, suggest that Boyd’s combination of inaction in response to reports of Pickens’ abuse and thinly-veiled hostility towards the educators who reported abuse resulted in an environment where Pickens essentially had free reign to harm her students.

Boyd’s attitude appeared to trickle down to some of her other employees. For example, Merritt, the Hopewell 1ST, received reports of Pickens’ abuse from at least eight individuals between 2004 and 2006, including from teachers, paraprofessionals, a Hopewell janitor, and parents of students. (Compl. ¶304.) Merritt herself allegedly witnessed Pickens knee and kick a student. (Compl. ¶ 310.) However, Merritt allegedly did not report this information to outside, authorities, and “intentionally lied to those who would report Pickens’ abuse ... by telling them the matter was being taken care of.”, (Id. ¶ 312.) She was also dismissive of parents’ concerns about their disabled children’s struggles at Hopewell. (Compl. ¶¶ 314-318, 336.) Merritt also followed Boyd’s lead in allowing Pickens to confront individuals who reported her. For example, when White reported Pickens, Merritt “made ... White attend a meeting with Pickens and tell Pickens what White had reported.” (Id. ¶ 327.)

Other Hopewell and FCSD employees were allegedly aware of the abuse between 2004 and 2007 but did little to nothing. Nancy Wadel, the Executive Director for FCSD Services for Exceptional Children, William Thompson and Sara McConnell, assistant principals at Hopewell, and Karen Weinmann, the Hopewell 1ST as of 2006, all allegedly received reports of Pick-ens’ abuse. (Compl. ¶¶407, 494, 505-06, 508-11.) According to Plaintiffs, none of these individuals took any significant action.

For example, Thompson was allegedly informed as early as 2004 that Pickens was harming children, and discussed the reports of Pickens’ abuse with Boyd, Merritt, White, Averett, and Pettes. (Compl. ¶ 494.) Like Boyd and Merritt, Thompson allegedly responded to reports of abuse made to him by informing the reporter that it was “being handled,” but did nothing of substance. (Id. ¶ 495.) Assistant Principal McConnell did not arrive at Hopewell until 2006, but allegedly learned of Pickens’ abuse shortly thereafter. (Id. ¶ 505.) McConnell discussed Pickens’ abuse with Boyd, Merritt, and Thompson,. but never reported the abuse to any higher authorities. (Id. ¶ 506.) Wadel, who supervised Pettes, was informed of “continued reports of mistreatment by Pickens from 2004 to May 2007” but did not report it. (Id. ¶ 407.)

And Thompson and Weinmann, in particular, allegedly adopted Boyd’s practice of discouraging reporting.’Thompson allegedly helped stymie Schuette’s 2004 social w'orker’s investigation, and Thompson and Weinmann both allegedly told teachers to refrain from telling parents that their children- had been abused. (E.g., id. ¶¶ 508-511.)

Pickens’ Abuse of Plaintiff During the 2006-07 School Year

Most of what the Court has just discussed allegedly occurred between 2004 and the spring of 2006. According to the Administrative Law Judge’s Final Decision, “Pickens’ abusive conduct toward her students worsened' during the 2006-07 school year.” (Final Decision ¶ 29.) That same year, Plaintiff Alex Williams arrived at Hopewell as a “happy, thirteen-year-old boy.” (Final Decision ¶ 28.) Although Alex faced significant obstacles in life due to his disabilities, he had been learning important tasks and improving his behavior, and “was making progress toward his IEP goals and objectives and ... enjoyed going to school.” (Id.)

Alex allegedly quickly became a victim of Pickens’ ■ abusive conduct. Pickens “pushed Alex down multiple times on hard tile flooring” and on cement or pavement; jerked him down to the ground by grabbing his book bag or a limb and yanking it; pushed him for not walking fast enough, despite the fact that he had cerebral palsy; threw his book bag at him hard enough to knock him down; and “violently slammed” Alex’s face into metal lockers “almost every day.” (Compl. ¶¶ 28-46.) The reason for -at least some of these actions was, apparently, because “Alex did not walk fast enough for Pickens, did not pay enough attention for Pickens, did not put his belongings into the locker” or did some other unidentified action that Pickens found inappropriate. (Compl. ¶ 48.)

Pickens also emotionally abused Alex. She abandoned him on a school bus, deprived him of his lunch for two days a week on average, and physically restrained him by affixing him to a Rifton chair in an unlit closet-like room that had a toilet, for “30 minutes to hours at a time." (Id. ¶¶ 82-85.) Sometimes Pickens allegedly intentionally placed demands on Alex that he could not meet—like requiring that he write when he didn’t know how to—so that she could “excessively and unduly severely punish him.” (Id. ¶ 54.)

And Pickens regularly acted abusively towards Alex’s classmates in front of him, and vice versa: she called her students “little shits,” “little fuckers,” “retards,” and “stupid;” threw objects like shoes and cameras at them; passed gas and burped in their faces; physically harmed Alex’s classmates in front of him by hitting, slapping, pushing, and kicking them; and rubbed her breasts and buttocks in Alex’s face and in,the faces of his classmates while he was present. (Id. ¶¶ 63-65, 73-74.)

Boyd received specific reports that Alex was being abused in 2006, when Amanda Groover, a FCSD paraprofessional, informed Boyd that Pickens was “shoving and pushing and knocking Alex down on hard surfaces”- and frequently removing Alex from the classroom. {Id. ¶ 109.) Other employees, including White, Tallant, Wade, and Wilson, all allegedly were made aware that Alex was being abused at some time in 2007. (Compl. ¶¶453, 498, 515-16, 530.)

The harm suffered by Alex as a result of Pickens’ abuse was “severe” and “life long.” {Id. ¶ 55.) He lost skills that he has yet to recover, regressed educationally and behaviorally, and now takes anxiety medication. (See id.) According to the Administrative Law Judge’s Final Decision, Alex’s ability to walk diminished, (Final Decision ¶ 45), his speech and language skills went in reverse, and he had increased difficulties with toileting. {Id. ¶ 52.) In 2010, three years after he was abused, Alex’s behavior and affect took a serious downturn, and he was allegedly diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder. (Id. ¶ 57.) Alex was never able to tell his parents or others about his abuse or the harm he had suffered because of his disabilities.

The May 2007 Investigation and Alleged Cover-up

As discussed above, Plaintiff alleges that at least 30 FCSD employees knew of Pick-ens’ alleged abuse between 2004 and 2007, but no action was taken against Pickens until May of 2007. (Compl. ¶ 126.) That month, Hopewell Special Education teacher Susan Tallant found Alex’s classmate Jake Marshall isolated and abandoned in a room on G-Hall, restrained to a chair and covered head to toe in feces. Tallant drafted a written statement about the incident and handed it to White, then the Hopewell department head of special education, and Merritt. (Final Decision ¶ 36.) Tallant’s report prompted an internal investigation by FCSD, which was conducted by an. independent investigation agency, Business Decisions Information, Inc. (“BDI”). The BDI investigation “revealed the long history of abusive conduct by Pickens towards” a number of students, including Alex. (Final Decision ¶37.) The investigation also revealed that G-Hall and -Hopewell staff were aware of the abuse, and reported it regularly to Boyd and other FCSD employees, but that Boyd refused to act on the reports. (Id.) The BDI investigator testified that the information uncovered was “almost ‘unbelievable’ ” because of the egregiousness of the conduct involved. (Id.) Pickens resigned in May 2007. (Compl. ¶ 505.)

Although the 2007 investigation resulted in Pickens’ resignation, many parents of her students, including Alex’s, did not learn of Pickens’ abuse until years later. No FCSD employee informed Alex’s parents that Alex was being abused, even after the 2007 BDI investigative report. (See, e.g., Compl. ¶¶316, 444, 457, 496, 498.) In fact, Alex’s parents did not learn of the abuse until July of 2009, when they were contacted by Jake Marshall’s parents. (Final Report ¶ 40 n. 17.)

Plaintiffs allege that this nondisclosure was because a number of FCSD employees participated in a plan to conceal the results of the investigation from parents and others. (Compl. ¶ 125.) FCSD officials, including the School Board president, Linda Schultz, conceded at Alex’s due process hearing that parents should always be informed if their child was abused at school. (Final Decision ¶ 38.) But Plaintiffs allege that no FCSD employee informed Alex’s parents of his abuse at the hands of Pick-ens. (E.g., Compl. II163.) And Plaintiffs allege that some FCSD employees took affirmative steps to actively hide or destroy evidence of the abuse.

For example, Wilson, the FCSD Superintendent from 2005 to 2008, learned of Pickens’ abuse in 2007, but allegedly ensured that Alex’s parents and the parents of other Hopewell students were not informed of the abusive conduct,, and allegedly agreed, along with Ronnie Wade, the FCSD Chief Human Resources Officer, that “no criminal investigation-would occur.” (Compl. ¶¶ 527, 529.) And Cindy Kan-ner, a FCSD Human Resources Specialist, allegedly joined with Wade and Wilson and “alter[ed] government documents” and destroyed evidence, to hide the abuse. (Compl. ¶ 534.) And Young, a FCSD Human Resources Administrator who allegedly participated in the 2004 decision to predetermine the outcome of social worker Schuette’s report, allegedly also declined to authorize an investigation into Pickens’ abuse of other children even after the 2007 BDI report was completed. (Compl. ¶ 230.)

Lower level staff members were allegedly compliant in this post-abuse cover up too. Weinmann, the Hopewell 1ST, allegedly directed Hopewell teachers not to talk about Pickens and not to tell any of the children’s parents of the abuse. She also later allegedly participated in a plan to retaliate against Tallant, the teacher who reported the May 2007 incident that led to the BDI investigation. (Compl. ¶¶ 510, 512.) Weinmann also allegedly had access to Pickens’ and Merritt’s emails, and after reading them, “deleted some or all of them.” (Id. ¶512.)

FCSD employees allegedly continued destroying evidence up until the date of Alex’s due process hearing. Schuette, the FCSD social worker who conducted the 2004 investigation, was subpoenaed in advance of that hearing. (Compl. ¶ 358.) Instead of providing all documents relevant to that investigation, Schuette allegedly “cut and pasted a few parts of a few responsive emails and then deleted all of the [remaining] responsive emails from her computer.” (Id.)

And Alex’s parents continued having difficulties obtaining clarity from the District even after they learned of the abuse from another parent. Alex’s mother described trying to get Alex’s records from the school as a “nightmare.” (Final Decision ¶ 62.) Basic information that Alex was allegedly clearly entitled to, like his speech therapy records and IEP data, were not produced to Alex’s parents until his 2012 due process hearing was nearly over. (Id.)

Alex allegedly suffered greatly as a result of FCSD’s failure to disclose the abuse in a timely manner. In 2006 and 2007, his parents were concerned about reports that Alex was becoming clumsy and falling down, but were “not aware at that time that his falls were often the result of being pushed by Pickens.” (Final Decision ¶ 41.) As a result, they sought treatment for Alex. They consulted with an orthopedic surgeon, who gave Alex Botox injections in both hamstrings. These injections significantly weakened Alex, and he had to use a walker or wheelchair for nearly a year while he rebuilt his strength. (Id.) Alex also regressed in certain, areas, like toileting (Id. ¶42), and in 2007 and 2008, he developed a “type of shyness that his family had never seen.” (Id. ¶ 43.) He withdrew and stayed in his room more. (Id. ¶ 43.) Alex also showed regression in vocational skills, including maintaining his balance, in 2008 and 2009. (Id. ¶ 46.) Plaintiffs’ expert witness at the due process hearing, Dr. Michael Mueller, concluded that “Alex’s progress took a ‘tremendous downturn’ in the years after he was abused in Pickens’ classroom,” and that “this regression was seen across several areas, including speech and language and toileting.” (Id. 1152.)

The District’s Knowledge of the Abuse

The Complaint also alleges that FCSD was aware of the abuse. First, School Board President Schultz testified that FCSD Board members were unaware of the abuse until after the BDI investigation. However, Pettes testified that the “School District was aware that Pickens was hurting children for many years and yet allowed her to remain as a teacher at Hopewell.” (Final Decision ¶ 38.) Pettes also testified that the School District was aware that Alex in particular was being abused, because of the multitude of informal reports made during the 2006-07 school year. (Id.) Another teacher, White, told á Georgia Professional Standards Commission investigator that she had “never worked in a school where they basically looked the other way when a teacher was abusing .... students.” (Compl. ¶ 449.)

And a significant number of senior FCSD officials were among the 30 FCSD employees who allegedly knew of Pickens’ abuse, including at least two superintendents, two principals, two assistant principals, and higher-ups in the Human Resources department. (Id. ¶¶ 126, 210). None of them reported Pickens’ abuse to other state authorities or the police, nor did they discipline Pickens in any way. (E.g., Id. ¶¶ 223, 225) (“[FCSD Human Resources Administrator] Young decided in communications with [Superintendent] Va-nairsdale, Denmark, Lynch, and Boyd that Pickens would not be fired, or put on an improvement plan” after receiving a November 2004 report indicating that Pickens was hitting her student, Jake Marshall, in the head repeatedly). In sum, the Complaint alleges that a FCSD teacher routinely abused special education students, that FCSD and dozens of its employees knew of the abuse, but that FCSD did little to nothing in response for at least three years.

Educators’ Duties to Report

Finally—separate from the facts alleged by the Complaint—the Court offers a quick overview of the obligations of Georgia teachers and other school staff to report abuse. The responsibilities imposed by Georgia statutes and regulations are an important backdrop to this case.

The “mandatory reporter” statute, O.C.G.A. § 19-7-5, requires teachers and certain other school personnel to report child abuse. The statute and its implementing regulations create an “up the ladder” system of reporting. If a person.is required to report known or suspected abuse “pursuant to such person’s duties as an employee of or volunteer at a hospital, school, social agency, or similar facility, that person shall notify the person in charge of the facility, or designated delegate thereof, and the person so notified shall report or cause a report to be made” to “a child welfare agency providing protective services ... or in the absence of such agency, to an appropriate police authority or district attorney.” O.C.G.A. § 19-7-5(c)(2)-(e) (effective April 27, 2006 through May 4, 2009). “A staff member who makes a report to the person designated pursuant to [O.C.G.A. § 19-7-5(c)(2)] [is] deemed to have fully complied with [their obligation to report.]” O.C.G.A. § 19-7-5(c)(2). In other words, the original reporter does not have the duty to report the abuse directly to police or other state authorities under the statute. Failure to comply with the statute is a misdemeanor. O.C.G.A. § 19-7-5(h).

The implementing regulations for the mandatory reporter statute at the time were similar: they required abuse to be reported to the “school social worker or visiting teacher” or “another person designated by the local superintendent to receive such reports.” Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. § 160-4-8.04(l)(c) (1990). The “designated person” is then required to report to the state Division of Family and Child Services and the school superintendent. Id. Again, the obligation to report goes up the chain of the command. Nothing in this portion of the regulations appears to require a reporter to report abuse to an individual other than the social worker or other person designated by the local superintendent.

In addition, the Georgia Professional Standards Commission imposes an ethical obligation on certified educators to report known failures to report abuse. Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. § 505-6-.01 (2005). Failure to comply with the Commission’s Code of Ethics does not, by itself, necessarily re-suit in criminal liability. Instead, the culpable party may be reprimanded, suspended, or terminated by the local board (after an investigation). O.C.G.A. §§ 20-2-984.3-5. And none of the above regulations or statutes impose civil liability for a failure to report abuse. ■

IV. Discussion

With that background in place, the Court next turns to the Plaintiffs’ claims. The Court first discusses whether FCSD may be liable for constitutional claims under Monell v. Dept. of Social Services of the City of New York, 436 U.S. 658, 98 S.Ct. 2018, 56 L.Ed.2d 611 (1978) The Court then turns to Principal Boyd’s liability, including her arguments that she is entitled to qualified immunity. Then, the Court addresses the substance of the constitutional claims, and whether they have been adequately alleged. The Court next turns to the issue of whether the individual defendants and Boyd are entitled to official immunity for all state law claims. Finally, the Court turns to thé § 1983 conspiracy and supervisory liability claims.

A. Fulton County School District’s Monell Liability

Of the 23 counts alleged in the Second Amended Complaint, roughly a dozen of them are directed towards FCSD. Count 1, Plaintiffs’ claim for attorney’s fees under IDEA, is directed solely at FCSD, and FCSD does not move to dismiss this claim. FCSD does move to dismiss all remaining claims against it.

FCSD argues first that Plaintiffs have failed to allege sufficient facts to support municipal liability under 42 U.S.C. § 1988 and Monell v. Dept. of Social Services of City of New York, 436 U.S. 658, 98 S.Ct. 2018, 56 L.Ed.2d 611 (1978). FCSD then argues that Plaintiffs have failed to allege facts to support their constitutional claims including their substantive due process claims, procedural due process claims, equal protection claims, and claims of cruel and unusual punishment, under both the United States and Georgia Constitutions.

1. Monell Liability Standard

Plaintiffs assert that FCSD “allowed, sanctioned, and covered up the abuse and abusive punishment of disabled children for at least five years.” (Pis.’ Resp. at 14 (Doc. 102.)) Plaintiffs advance two primary theories of municipal liability: either FCSD had a custom of inaction and indifference in responding to complaints of abuse against its students, or, in the alternative, that FCSD final policymakers made the decision that “Pickens would not be fired, would not be reported, and would not be stopped from abusing ... disabled children.” (Pis.’ Resp. at 15.) The Court first addresses liability under the “custom” theory.

Municipalities may be sued for “constitutional deprivations visited- pursuant to governmental “custom” even though such custom has not received formal approval through the [municipality’s]' official decisionmaking channels.” Monell v. Dept. of Social Services of City of New York, 436 U.S. 658, 690-91, 98 S.Ct. 2018, 56 L.Ed.2d 611 (1978). A custom is a “widespread practice that, ‘although not authorized by written law- or express municipal policy, is so permanent and well settled as to [have] ... [the] force of law.” Griffin v. City of Opar-Locka, 261 F.3d 1295, 1308 (11th Cir.2001) (on summary judgment, evidence was sufficient to show custom of sexual harassment when municipality’s workplace was “permeated with vulgar, demeaning, and sexually suggestive conversations about women, improper demands for sexual favors and dates ... and unfair treatment” of women).

In order to state a § 1983 claim against a school district for its'“custom of inaction” in responding to complaints of abuse by employees, a plaintiff must plead: (1) the existence of a persistent pattern of abuse by school employees' that (2) was known about by the school district (3) who then tacitly approved or deliberately ignored the abuse, such that their inaction can be said to be a custom of deliberate indifference to abuse and (4) this custom of deliberate indifference was a “moving force” behind the violation of the constitutional rights. See Hackett v. Fulton County School Dist., 238 F.Supp.2d 1330, 1365 (N.D.Ga.2002), The Court addresses each element in turn.

a. Custom: Persistent Pattern of Abuse

Plaintiffs must first allege that there was a persistent pattern of abuse, because an isolated incident of wrongdoing is insufficient to establish a custom of ignoring such wrongdoing. McDowell v. Brown, 392 F.3d 1283, 1290-91 (11th Cir.2004) (finding no basis for Monell liability where inmate could not point to more than one incident where jail’s alleged under-staffing led to an inability to transport an inmate in need of medical attention).

There is no bright line identifying when misconduct transforms from a couple of “isolated instances” into a pattern of abuse. Doe v. School Board of Broward County, Fla., 604 F.3d 1248,1266 (11th Cir.2010) (two instances of sexual harassment or abuse did not establish custom of inaction, but contrasting case with Valdes v. Crosby, 460 F.3d 1231, 1244 (11th Cir.2006), where evidence that prison received “at least thirteen complaints and inquiries” regarding alleged prisoner abuse created fact question of whether or not prison had custom of ignoring complaints). One or two incidents of abuse is generally insufficient to indicate a pattern. But on a motion to dismiss, allegations of anything more than that are generally sufficient, even if the acts were committed by one employee. Stoneking v. Bradford Area School Dist., 882 F.2d 720, 728-29 (3rd Cir.1989) (five complaints of sexual abuse by two teachers over four years sufficient to establish custom of inaction); J.V. ex rel. Ortiz v. Seminole County School Bd., No. 04-cv-1889, 2006 WL 1243766 at *3 (M.D.Fla. May 26, 2005) (denying dismissal when school board had knowledge of a single teacher’s repeated acts of abuse and still tried to transfer her; if proven, such allegations would “establish tacit authorization” by district).

Here, Plaintiffs allege a multi-year pattern of abuse by Pickens against several special education students, spanning from at least 2004 through 2007, and resulting in at least 10 reports of abuse to Principal Boyd, 8 reports to Merritt, and a number of other reports to senior FCSD officials. (E.g., Compl. ¶28, 113.) This is more than adequate to establish a pattern of abuse. See Valdes, 450 F.3d at 1244 (prison received 13 complaints about prisoner abuse); Stoneking, 882 F.2d at 720 (school received 5 complaints of abuse over 2 years).

b. FCSD’s Knowledge

The school district or school board must also know about the persistent abuse that led to the alleged constitutional violations in order to impose Monell liability. That knowledge may come from actual notice, or may be imputed via constructive notice under some circumstances through notice to an appropriate senior official. See City of St. Louis v. Praprotnik, 485 U.S. 112, 130, 108 S.Ct. 915, 99 L.Ed.2d 107 (1988) (“[i]t would ... be a different matter if a series of decisions by a subordinate official manifested a “custom or usage” of which the supervisor must have been aware”); Young v. City of Augusta, Ga. Through DeVaney, 59 F.3d 1160, 1173 (11th Cir.1995) (“[c]ity policymakers should have been aware” of a “pattern of deliberate indifference to the psychiatric needs of mentally ill inmates” at a city jail); Hackett, 238 F.Supp.2d at 1365.

Plaintiffs allege that FCSD itself was aware of Pickens’ abuse. Importantly, Plaintiffs attach a copy of the Final Decision, which memorializes testimony from a senior FCSD employee who confirmed that FCSD knew Pickens was harming children “for many years.” (Compl., Ex. B at ¶ 38 (“Pettes, the School District’s Special Education Coordinator, agreed that the School District was aware that Pickens was hurting children for many years and yet allowed her to remain as a teacher at Hopewell.”) At the motion to dismiss stage, this is sufficient to infer that FCSD actually knew about the abuse.

Even if that allegation was not enough, Plaintiffs have alleged that FCSD superintendents had knowledge of the abuse and that this provided FCSD with constructive notice of Pickens’ abuse. This is also sufficient at the motion to dismiss stage, because an allegation that a superintendent, board member, or other senior official had knowledge of the alleged misconduct is enough to infer that the district itself had notice. See Fundiller v. City of Cooper City, 777 F.2d 1436, 1443 (11th Cir.1985) (reversing district court’s dismissal when complaint alleged a custom of allowing the use of excessive force, and further alleged the mayor and city’s public safety director were aware of such conduct); Brown v. City of Fort Lauderdale, 923 F.2d at 1481 (11th Cir.1991) (reversing grant of dismissal when plaintiff alleged that police department engaged in custom of racially discriminatory practices and police chief knew about such practices); Dipippa v. Union School Dist., 819 F.Supp.2d 435, 443 (W.D.Pa.2011) (denying motion to dismiss in § 1983 suit alleging that a student was sexually assaulted by a teacher, when complaint pled a “custom, practice, and/or policy of deliberate indifference to and/or concealment of instances of known and improper contacts and relationships” between a teacher and a student, “by way of specific actions, or inac-tions, taken by the District superintendent ... the high school principal ... and the athletic director for the high school”).

Here, the Complaint pleads that over thirty (30) FCSD employees were aware of the abuse. (Compl. ¶¶ 113, 126, 304.) Among those employees were a superintendent and multiple principals and assistant principals. (See, e.g., Compl. ¶223.) This too is sufficient as a whole to infer that FCSD “must have known” about the abuse. Praprotnik, 485 U.S. at 130, 108 S.Ct. 915.

c. Deliberate Indifference

Assuming a school district knows or should know about a pattern of abuse by an employee, it must also tacitly approve of the custom or be “deliberately indifferent” towards it. See Griffin, 261 F.3d at 1308 (testimony to jury established “that the final policymakers ... were aware of the [sexual harassment] problem and were completely indifferent to it”); see also Hackett v. Fulton County School Dist., 238 F.Supp.2d 1330, 1347, 1365 (N.D.Ga.2002) (granting summary judgment to defendant when school district immediately removed teacher upon receiving notice of alleged abuse and when superintendent never received any reports of alleged sexual misconduct by teacher).

Deliberate indifference requires “(1) subjective knowledge of a risk of serious harm; (2) disregard of that risk; (3) by conduct that is more than gross negligence.” Franklin v. Curry, 738 F.3d 1246, 1250 (11th Cir.2013). Deliberate indifference may be shown by a lack of appropriate action in the face of a pattern of similar constitutional violations, because a lack of action suggests tacit authorization or ratification. “In other words, a longstanding and widespread practice is deemed authorized by the. policymaking officials because they must have known about it but failed to stop it.” Brown v. City of Fort Lauderdale, 923 F.2d 1474, 1481 (11th Cir.1991); Fundiller, 777 F.2d at 1443 (reversing dismissal where “persistent failure to take disciplinary action against [a subordinate]” supported “the inference that a municipality has ratified conduct, thereby establishing a ‘custom’ within the meaning of Monell”).

Here, the Complaint alleges that despite widespread actual knowledge of Pickens’ pattern of abuse, Principal Boyd, FCSD superintendents, senior Human Resources officials and others failed to intervene, discipline Pickens, report the abuse to the appropriate authorities, or notify parents. (E.g., Compl. ¶¶ 108-15, 223) (“Young decided in communications with Vanairsdale, Denmark, Lynch, and Boyd that Pickens would not be .. put on an improvement plan, written up, ... reported to DFACS or the police or other authorities for hitting Jake Marshall in the head hard frequently, calling him vile names, spraying Lysol on a child numerous times, and restraining a disabled child’s arm to a chair.”) The Complaint further alleges that Superintendent Va-nairsdale and others became involved in a FCSD social work department investigation of Pickens at the request of Boyd, and that together the Superintendent, Principal Boyd, and several other FCSD officials predetermined the outcome of that investigation, and decided that Pickens would not be' reported. (Compl. ¶¶ 224, 246.) This, Plaintiffs allege, “empowered” Boyd to continue her course of conduct of non-reporting. (Compl. ¶ 249.)

Taken together, an inference can be drawn that FCSD had notice of Pickens’ alleged abuse, knew that it had persisted for some time, knew that the abuse had been perpetrated against multiple students, and still failed to intervene at all. This is sufficient to allege a custom of “obvious, deliberate indifference to [ ] abuse.” Doe v. Claiborne County, Tenn., 103 F.3d 495, 508 (6th Cir.1996).

d. Moving Force

Finally, the custom must be the moving force behind the alleged constitutional violation. Hackett, 238 F.Supp.2d at 1365. In other words, the custom of indifference to abuse must have a substantial causal relationship to the alleged harm suffered by the Plaintiff. Here, Plaintiffs allege that FCSD was aware of Pickens’ abuse of disabled students for at least three years before Alex was abused, but did nothing in response—and in fact, squashed the possibility that a 2004 social worker’s report would lead to a recommendation that Pickens be reported. This is sufficient to suggest that FCSD’s “custom of inaction” and “deliberate indifference” lasted for three years, and FCSD’s failure to take any action that might stop Pickens’ pattern of abuse resulted in the specific abuse. Doe v. Faerber, 446 F.Supp.2d 1311, 1317 (M.D.Fla.2006) (denying dismissal when student alleged that school board member had sexually abused him and that school board had “longstanding practice and custom to avoid and ignore complaints and incidents of sexual abuse of children, particularly when such abuse is perpetrated with power and influence in the School Board”). Thus the Complaint fairly alleges that FCSD’s actions caused Alex’s abuse and, as a result, caused the underlying constitutional violations. As a result, Plaintiffs have pled sufficient facts to support their Monell theory of liability against FCSD.

2. Final Policymaker Theory of Liability

Plaintiffs also argue that FCSD may be held liable under a final policymaker theory of liability. The final policymaker theory of liability provides a method for establishing local governmental liability where an individual vested with ultimate, non-reviewable decision-making authority for the challenged action or policy has approved or implemented the unconstitutional action at issue. Scala v. Winter Park, 116 F.3d 1396, 1398-1403 (11th Cir.1997). “To determine if someone is a final policy maker, [courts] look not only to ‘state and local positive law,’ but also ‘custom and usage having the force of law.’ ” Holloman ex rel. Holloman v. Harland, 370 F.3d 1252, 1292 (11th Cir.2004)

Here, Plaintiffs argue that several FCSD senior officials, including two superintendents, made express decisions to retain Pickens despite evidence that she was abusing children and covered up the evidence of that abuse. (Pis.’ Resp. at 15.) Defendants respond by arguing that no individuals named in the Complaint “were final policymakers with respect to personnel decisions affecting teachers,” and that instead that power is solely vested with “local boards of education, not local school administrators.” (FCSD’s Reply, Doc. Ill at 7, citing O.C.G.A. §§ 20-2-940-942.) For the following reasons, the Court concludes that preventing Plaintiffs from proceeding under this theory of Monell liability would be unwise at this juncture.

First, Plaintiffs need not identify who precisely was the final policymaker in their Complaint, because that inquiry is “fact sensitive” and requires development of the record. Hoefling v. City of Miami, 811 F.3d 1271, 1280 (11th Cir.2016) (“We therefore believe that identifying and proving that a final policymaker acted on behalf of a municipality is ‘an evidentiary standard, and hot a pleading requirement.’”) The question of who has final policymaking authority in the context of the facts of this case is thus much more appropriately resolved at summary judgment, not at the pleading stage. This alone is enough to counsel against dismissal, and the following discussion illustrates why.

Some of the individuals named in the Complaint undoubtedly had an extremely important role in the decision to retain Pickens, and thus, depending on the facts, may have acted as' “final policymakers” with respect to the decision' to' not terminate or discipline her. The Court takes Superintend