$10 Million Verdict Against Tamalpais Union High School District for Coach's Sexual Abuse of Student

Normandie Burgos spent years as a PE teacher and tennis coach at Tamalpais High School in Marin County while abusing students in his care. The abuse against Alexander Harrison began in 2003 and was among several instances spanning nearly a decade. Burgos was not fired until 2008 and was not criminally prosecuted until much later: in 2019, a jury convicted him on 60 counts of sexual abuse, and he is currently serving a 255-year prison sentence.

The school district had warning signs years before action was taken. Attorney Mark Boskovich argued at trial that police had informed school officials in late 2002 about Burgos after a student wrestler complained that the coach had touched his genitals during a supposed body fat test. Rather than investigating fully, the district concealed the complaint from key staff members and continued allowing Burgos unsupervised access to students.

Harrison filed his civil lawsuit against the district in March 2020, enabled by California AB 218, which temporarily lifted the statute of limitations on childhood sexual abuse claims. The case was tried before Judge James T. Chou in Marin County Superior Court. On May 11, 2022, the jury found the district 100 percent negligent and awarded Harrison $10 million.

The district appealed, but the appellate court denied the appeal in September 2024, tacking on an additional $1.5 million in accrued interest. Shortly after, the district reached a $17.5 million global settlement with four Burgos survivors -- Harrison received $11.5 million of that total. Three other survivors, whose identities remain anonymous, shared the remainder.