More mystery in Sussex case involving student breast photo

It is unclear what the Indian River School District decided as the future of employees placed on administrative leave.

It is unclear whether Bradley Layfield, the principal at Sussex Central High School, still has a job.

Layfield is among those sued by a former student who claims the district officials circulated a photo of her exposed breast to other staff with a picture of Janet Jackson superimposed on her face.

His position was expected to be discussed Wednesday night during the Indian River School Board District’s monthly meeting.

All discussions related to Layfield took place in executive session.

The district won’t comment on the outcome.

And Layfield’s lawyer, Thomas S. Neuberger, said Thursday he expects to hear sometime by the end of Thursday the district’s decision on Layfield.

The district already had appointed an interim principal.

The board shared no updates on Layfield’s employment status during the meeting, even when several people shared their thoughts on the incident in the public comment portion of the Wednesday night meeting.

Most of the comments were in support of Layfield.

Many pointed to his years of service for Delaware’s children, his commitment and passion for education, how he’s the first worker in and the last worker out.

Even if the lawsuit’s allegations are true, one said, no one should be judged off the worst mistake they’ve ever made.

One community member did say that even if the allegations are not true, the trust between Layfield, the students and parents has been broken and once that happens, there’s no going back.

The incident dates back to the beginning of the year when Aniya Harmon, 18 and now a graduate of the school, allegedly had her breast exposed defending herself in a fight with another student.

When observing the footage, which is standard protocol for administrations when a fight or another safety-related event happens, administration officials photoshopped Janet Jackson’s face on Harmon’s face and circulated the image, according tot he lawsuit.

Harmon filed a lawsuit against the school, district, Layfield, and Assistant Principal Matthew Jones in September.

Thursday, the district released the following statement:

“Given that last evening’s board actions concerned personnel matters, we must refrain from comment in respect of our employees’ privacy rights. The personnel agenda from the executive session described the capacity in which, and building where, the employees are assigned. 

“Any action taken is protected from disclosure. If further information can be provided in the future, we will do so.”

Here’s a timeline of events:

May 25: Indian River employees placed on admin leave, reason unclear

Aug. 21: Indian River admin breaks silence after secretive suspension 

Sept. 12: Sussex Central student whose breast was exposed during fight files lawsuit

Oct. 11: Dismiss suit, says principal accused of sharing breast photo

Jarek Rutz

Raised in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, Jarek earned a B.A. in journalism and a B.A. in political science from Temple University in 2021. After running CNN’s Michael Smerconish’s YouTube channel, Jarek became a reporter for the Bucks County Herald before joining Delaware LIVE News.

Jarek can be reached by email at [email protected] or by phone at (215) 450-9982. Follow him on Twitter @jarekrutz and on LinkedIn.