Connect with us

Local

Fresno PD Is ‘Aware’ of Video in Alleged Clovis West Assault

Published

on

Fresno police are investigating an alleged assault that occurred Sept. 20 in the Clovis West boys' locker room. (GV Wire File)
Share with friends

The Fresno Police Department confirmed Wednesday that it is investigating an alleged assault that is sexual in nature at Clovis West High School.

“The original report that came in . . . was a sexual battery,” Lt. Bill Dooley said. “That is the allegation that we had. And that’s the investigation we’re working on,”

Fresno police are treating the case as a misdemeanor battery, which could still have a sexual assault component. No arrests have been made.

Sources have told GV Wire that multiple students were involved in the alleged attack in the Clovis West boys’ locker room and the victim was sexually violated.

In addition, sources said that the attack was witnessed by several bystanders who didn’t participate in the assault.

Dooley said all of the suspects are juveniles. He also told GV Wire that he anticipates the investigation will conclude next week and be turned over to the Fresno County District Attorney’s Office.

Video Taken of Alleged Assault

Dooley said that there was a video of the alleged assault

“I think it went completely Facebook crazy. I believe everyone got sent videos on this. We are unable to comment because this is an open investigation. We’re not going to comment on the evidence that we’ve been provided. However, we are aware of a video that is out there,” Dooley said.

Clovis Unified Officials Respond to Allegations

Rumors have flown among the Clovis West community about the alleged incident. Meanwhile, answers from the district have been limited.

Fresno police “have been investigating since minutes after we learned of the allegation and asked them to investigate,” said Clovis Unified spokeswoman Kelly Avants, who declined further comment pending the investigation’s outcome.

Clovis Unified Trustee Tiffany Stoker Madsen said in a statement, “I am committed to ensuring that all of our students feel safe at school and have confidence the District will conduct a thorough investigation in conjunction with Fresno PD.”

Police Investigation

The alleged incident took place Sept. 20, with Fresno police called to investigate on Sept. 23 when the district learned of the allegations. Clovis Unified has its own police force, which typically investigates crimes committed by students on campus.

But, Dooley said, Fresno police do get involved with a major crime like homicide or rape.

“Typically, we wouldn’t respond to one of those, but we did anyway to provide some assistance (to Clovis Unified), Dooley said. “Our detectives went out, we interviewed the victim. We interviewed independent witnesses, determined that it did not fall within our agreement and, typically, we would have turned this back over to Clovis Unified School District Police.

“However, we had already completed much of the investigation. As a courtesy and for continuity for the case, we agreed to go ahead and continue it until its end,” Dooley said.

The school is within the Fresno city limits.

Curiosity drives David Taub. The award-winning journalist might be shy, but feels mighty with a recorder in his hand. He doesn't see it his job to "hold public officials accountable," but does see it to provide readers (and voters) the information needed to make intelligent choices. Taub has been honored with several writing awards from the California News Publishers Association. He's just happy to have his stories read. Joining GV Wire in 2016, Taub covers politics, government and elections, mainly in the Fresno/Clovis area. He also writes columns about local eateries (Appetite for Fresno), pro wrestling (Off the Bottom Rope), and media (Media Man). Prior to joining the online news source, Taub worked as a radio producer for KMJ and PowerTalk 96.7 in Fresno. He also worked as an assignment editor for KCOY-TV in Santa Maria, California, and KSEE-TV in Fresno. He has also worked behind the scenes for several sports broadcasts, including the NCAA basketball tournament, and the Super Bowl. When not spending time with his family, Taub loves to officially score Fresno Grizzlies games. Growing up in the San Francisco Bay Area, Taub is a die-hard Giants and 49ers fan. He graduated from the University of Michigan with dual degrees in communications and political science. Go Blue! You can contact David at 559-492-4037 or at Send an Email

Continue Reading
Advertisement GVwire