In 2014, the plaintiffs, five female water polo players from Kennedy High School, all under the age of 16, were allegedly sexually abused at the school by one of their water polo coaches, Joshua Owens. The female students accused Owens of sexual abuse at the school in 2015, but school officials cleared him. In November 2016, Owens was arrested. He ultimately pleaded guilty to one felony count each of oral copulation of a victim younger than 16 and sexual penetration of a victim younger than 16, as well as six misdemeanor counts of child annoyance. He was sentenced to six months in prison. The five female water polo players sued Owens; the water polo head coach, Eric Pierce; a teacher at the school, Ian Sabala; the athletics directors at the school, David Jankowski and Dean Wang; the school’s principal, Russell Earnest; the school’s assistant principal, Jack Jensen; and the operator of the school, the Anaheim Union High School District. The students alleged that Owens’ actions constituted sexual abuse and that the remaining defendants were negligent in their supervision of Owens. They also alleged that the remaining defendants were negligent in the investigation of the allegations against Owens and negligent in their failure to report the allegations to law enforcement, as required. Owens did not respond, and a default judgment was entered against him. Plaintiffs’ counsel contended that school officials cleared Owens in 2015, following a 15- to 20-minute investigation, during which the school officials made no attempt to interview the alleged victims or the whistleblower. Counsel contended that as a result, Owens continued to abuse and harass female athletes at the school until his arrest in November 2016. Plaintiffs’ counsel maintained that Pierce and Sabala were alerted to Owens’ conduct and that Jankowski, Wang and Earnest were subsequently alerted as well, but that the school officials failed to report the allegations of Owens’ conduct to law enforcement or Child Protective Services in 2014 and 2015, as required by California law. Plaintiffs’ counsel asserted that the school officials’ failures allowed Owens to sexually abuse two teenage athletes, begin sexually abusing a Kennedy High School freshman athlete in 2016, and sexually harass at least two other Kennedy High School students by him asking the students to have sex with him., The plaintiffs alleged that they were sexually abused and harassed by one of their water polo coaches. As a result, they underwent counseling. The plaintiffs sought recovery of damages for their respective past and future emotional pain and suffering.