Parents Sue Trinity Valley School Over Sexual Abuse of Multiple Elementary, Middle School Girls

Lawsuit says school and school board followed neglect with coverup

Parents of children at Trinity Valley School have filed suit against the school and its board of trustees, saying the school’s neglect created the conditions that allowed the sexual abuse of at least 16 young girls, and that the board has covered up the sexual abuse for nearly two years.

Trinity Valley School is a pre-K through 12^th grade private school in Fort Worth. Authorities arrested the school’s piano teacher, Trent Muse, in June 2024 and charged him with five counts of indecency with a child. He was subsequently indicted by a Tarrant County grand jury.

“We believe the evidence will show that the defendants in this case created the conditions for this serial pedophile to continually assault and traumatize these kids,” said Winston & Strawn attorney Natalie Arbaugh, who represents the parents of children who were abused. “In my view, what’s even worse is that they then tried to sweep the entire thing under the rug and pressured the parents of these children to keep them from speaking out about what happened.”

The lawsuit says the school told parents that Muse had left for personal reasons and even encouraged families to continue sending their children to him for private lessons, saying there was “no cause for concern.”

Though the school reported Muse to Texas Child Protective Services, it did not tell parents it had done so when it happened, the lawsuit adds.

“We intend to show that the school and the board attempted to silence anyone who tried to dig into Muse’s misconduct, telling teachers they would be fired for discussing the matter with parents,” said attorney Charla Aldous, who is part of the legal team. “Based on reports we have received, the school even hid what had happened from its own staff counselors.”

According to the filing, the incidents happened over the course of eight months during the 2022-2023 school year, primarily in a small, secluded classroom on the campus, where Muse was left unmonitored, unsupervised and alone with the children. There were no working cameras in the classroom, and Muse was allowed to teach the children after hours without supervision.

Attorneys say the victims in this case are receiving counseling and other forms of medical care, including treatment for trauma-related conditions believed to be connected to the abuse. The children have exhibited behavioral and academic performance issues, such as refusing to hug their fathers and acting out at school.

The case is John Doe and Jane Doe 1 et al. v. The Trinity Valley School et al., Cause No. 153-363131-25 in the 153^rd District Court of Tarrant County, Texas.

Winston & Strawn LLP is an international law firm with 15 offices in North America, South America, Asia and Europe. More information about the firm is available at www.winston.com.

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