Four women accusing a former D.C. public school teacher of sexual abuse stepped forward Thursday as part of an amended complaint.
The women claim that Robert Weismiller had an inappropriate sexual relationship with them while he was their teacher in the 1970s and '80s.
The four join Ayana Blue, who alleges Weismiller fathered her daughter while she was a special education student at The Transition Academy at Shadd in southeast Washington.
Blue filed a lawsuit against Weismiller, the District of Columbia government, DCPS and former D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee last fall.
“And I ask myself why did he pick me out of everybody that’s in that school, why me?” said Blue. “And I know that question now because I guess he saw that I was weak. And he decided to pick me out of everybody else.”
Blue’s lawyers said a subsequent DNA test shows Weismiller is undeniably the father of Blue’s daughter, who is now 17 months old.
Weismiller has had a long teaching career at various school districts in the area. The women who joined the complaint Thursday were students in Prince George’s County and Prince William County at the time of the alleged abuse. They contacted Blue’s lawyer, Scott Gilbert, after seeing television coverage of Blue’s lawsuit.
Local
Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia local news, events and information
“I don’t have any idea how many more there will be, but I think that this individual clearly is a predator. He’s been doing this for decades,” said Gilbert. “His ammo is the same with every woman and I would not be surprised to find a dozen other women coming forward.”
In October 2010, the District of Columbia, DCPS, and Rhee moved to dismiss Blue’s complaint.
