DISCOVERY PLAN

I.

Party/Witness: Justin/Justine Cook Discovery Method(s):

o Interrogatory Information Seeking:

o We are seeking information regarding KHS’s Anti-Bullying Policy and how staff are trained and prepared to handle situations that arise in the policy.

Too big of a workload o As the primary author of the current anti-bullying policy, we seek to prove

that even if precautions such as strict school policies exist, the school’s duty extends past a piece of paper with policies on it.

o We also are seeking to find out what exactly school counselors are responsible for when it comes to meeting with students.

o We are also seeking to find out why more serious measures were not taken when Billings first met with Cook.

o Finally, we are seeking why Cook never had a follow-up meeting with Billings.

Rationale: Justin/Justine Cook was chosen as a witness because as school counselor of KHS, Cook was the only faculty member to discuss the problem with Billings. Cook mentions in his/her statement that, “…I must admit it is a really difficult job. 5,000 students attend KHS, and almost 1,500 of them are freshmen,” which helps show the jury one person isn’t enough for the work at hand. Another reason Cook is used as a witness is to directly compare his/her job description, responsibilities, and school goals to a counselor of another school. This will be used to assess how prepared/underprepared KHS is in accordance with surrounding schools. Cook was also the primary author the school’s anti-bullying policy, will be used as a witness to explain in detail why the policy was created as it was. Choosing Cook as a witness will help determine whether KHS and Metro City School District are liable for the damages incurred by Billings, and will help project the idea of negligent supervision which lessens Pearson’s liability.

II.

Party/Witness: Brendon/Brenda Li Discovery Method(s):

o Interrogatory Information Seeking:

o We are seeking information regarding KHS’s Anti-Bullying Policy as well as KHS’s Cell Phone Policy.

o We are seeking to discover what a principal’s duty of care is to students in similar situations as Billings and Pearson.

o We are also seeking to understand why cyberbullying is not covered or even mentioned within the school’s policies if complaints from parents on this issue have been presented.

o We also seek to understand why in his/her statement Principal Li stated, “Had I known more about the messages, I would have intervened,” when receiving an email about the messages/bullying the school principal did no further investigation.

o Finally, we seek whether or not Principal Li feels liable for any of the events which occurred between Billings and Pearson during August through December.

Rationale: Brendon/Brenda Li was chose a witness because he/she is principal of the school and also was a member of the committee that created KHS’s policies. Because Li was on the committee, he/she should demonstrate knowledgeable tactics in resolving issues similar to this one. Another reason Li was chosen as a witness is to assert the idea that as a principal, Li had a duty to further investigate the situation once it was brought to his/her attention. According to KHS policy, “The principal is required to conduct a prompt and thorough investigation of each alleged bullying incident that is reported to him/her.” Principal Li did not conduct a thorough investigation and in his/her statement sounds confused and unaware of the severity of the situation. He/she never met with either Billings or Pearson to further investigate. Brendon/Brenda Li will add to the idea of negligent supervision which lessens the liability of Person.

III.

Party/Witness: C.J. Pearson Discovery Method(s):

o Interrogatory o Deposition

Information Seeking:o We are seeking to establish the type of relationship between Billings and

Pearson.o We are seeking to show how long cell phone use went on in school

disregarding the cell phone policy which clearly states cell phones are prohibited. This helps to take blame from Pearson and show the school’s liability.

o We are seeking what being a high school student is like during this time and how students act towards each other and in general.

o Finally, we are seeking to create how in retrospect this has affected another student’s life and overall being.

Rationale: We have chosen C.J. Pearson as a witness because Pearson is a current ninth grade student at King High School who can better explain what high school is like now. Jury members could vary in age and education level, but having a current high school student describing high school life will put the situation in better perspective. In high school, kids get away with much more than in years prior. The jokes and joking mannerisms of kids in the present appears much harsher than previously. Social media gives kids a place to coward behind while verbally hurting another. Those new trends will be best explained by someone living them while also showing how this ordeal has affected a second student, Pearson.

IV.

Party/Witness: Alex Billings Discovery Method(s):

o Interrogatory o Physical and Mental Examinations

Information Seeking:o We are seeking to hear Billings’s opinion on the overall conflict between

Billings and Pearson.o We are seeking Billings’s intake on how the school handled the situation.o We are seeking Billings’s explanation to why he/she never stood up for

her/himself.

o We are seeking a second mental examination to test for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder by an unknown expert chosen by the court to prevent any chance of false or biased test results.

o We are also seeking why Billings never contacted Cook again after their meeting at the beginning of November if the alleged bullying continued or worsened.

o Finally, we are seeking whether or not Billings’s video game usage increased from August to December and if the usage lessened after December 6, 2010 after being enrolled in SJA.

Rationale: We have chosen Billings as a witness to provide evidence suggesting the lack of effort Billings put into helping better the situation. Had Billings represented signs of the severe emotional distress he/she experienced the outcome would have significantly differed. The question of whether or not Billings was bullied to an extent by Pearson is not up for debate. However, the extent to the bullying which allegedly caused Billings thousands of dollars in damage is up for question. Billings’s video game usage was mentioned during the meeting with Cook and can be used as evidence to provide an alternative to why Billings’s academic performance plummeted instead of because of Pearson. We are getting a second diagnostic PTSD test in order to see if Billings was inaccurately diagnosed by someone whose main responsibility at SJA is to recruit new students. According to Billings’s witness statement, he/she passed up several opportunities in order to stop the conduct. We will use Billings to depict that even if Pearson did bully Billings, in response to how Billings acted, one could conclude the damage was not nearly as devastating as he/she claimed.

V.

Party/Witness: Francis Billings Discovery Method(s):

o Interrogatory Information Seeking:

o We are seeking the opinion of the events that occurred on December 1, 2010 when Francis Billings met with Principal Li in regards to Alex.

o We are seeking to understand why Francis Billings did not want to cooperate whatsoever with KHS.

o We are seeking the explanation of why Saint Joseph Academy was chosen as Alex’s new school.

o We are seeking information on Alex’s video game usage.o We are seeking Francis Billings’s first impression of Saint Joseph

Academy.

o Finally, we are seeking in a mother’s opinion how this incident affected her child emotionally, academically, and as an overall person.

Rationale: We are choosing Francis Billings as a witness because we are trying to present Francis Billings as irrational, outrageous, and over dramatic when showing up at KHS on December 1, 2010. Because of Francis’s reaction, he/she refused to calm down enough to appropriately handle the incident. Had Francis Billings been more rational, calm, and less tempered being, Francis and Principal Li could have discussed ways to solve the conflict that would not total thousands of dollars in damage. We are also choosing Francis Billings as a witness because according to his/her witness statement; Francis Billings could have potentially chosen a very costly, private, Christian institution for ill, materialistic, spiteful reasons. If we can prove Francis Billings potentially chose SJA for the wrong reasons, then no one, besides the Billings Family, should be responsible for paying any of the tuition at SJA.

VI.

Party/Witness: Dr. Gabriel/Gabrielle Rodriguez Discovery Method(s):

o Interrogatory Information Seeking:

o We are seeking Dr. Rodriguez’s background education and experience in psychology.

o We are seeking the specific job duties of both SJA psychologist and job duties of being head of the recruitment committee.

o We are seeking Dr. Rodriguez’s opinion on what exactly “lasting trauma” is and the time frame of what “lasting” is in an expert’s opinion.

o We are seeking to find out why only a PTSD test was conducted and no further tests were.

o We are seeking Dr. Rodriguez’s expert diagnosis on Alex Billings. Rationale: We have chosen Dr. Rodriguez as a witness because we are

attempting to get both the first PTSD test results excluded from evidence as well as attempting to get Dr. Rodriguez excluded as a witness. We would like to exclude the first test results based on the question of Rodriguez’s principles and methods used in the diagnosis. We will attempt to impeach Dr. Rodriguez based on his/her lack of credibility. Raising questions on Dr. Rodriguez’s credibility and the questionable test results administered by Rodriguez will help to show that Billings’s damages are much less extreme than depicted by the Billings family. If Alex Billings is not suffering from PTSD then Pearson should not be responsible for Billings’s therapy sessions with Dr. Snyder totaling $20,800.