Carpenter Elementary principal responds in civil lawsuit about student's suicide

In Muniz’s March 27 filing, he responded to each point made in the complaint directly. Muniz acknowledged certain key events in the family’s narrative, but denied some others.

In the complaint, and in an interview with the Wyoming Tribune Eagle last year, the Pine family said that the younger Paul suffered from a “serious emotional disability” which included depression, anxiety and ADHD.

“Paul’s disabilities caused him to worry excessively, to be withdrawn, to be irritable and to have feelings of being alone and not loved,” the family’s complaint read.

The complaint said the Pine parents first became aware of their child’s suicidal ideation in October of 2022, after he admitted to them that he “felt like killing himself.” They immediately took their child to the emergency room, where they said he was given a suicide risk assessment and stabilized. He was admitted to a behavioral health facility for inpatient mental health treatment, at the request of a doctor, the next day. Chandel Pine called Muniz to make him aware of this, the complaint said. In his response, Muniz acknowledged that phone call.

A behavioral health team at Carpenter met to discuss Paul Pine’s behavior and hospitalization. Muniz acknowledged the meeting in his response, but denied being present for it. This is where Muniz’s account of the events begins to differ from that of Paul Pine’s parents.

He acknowledged in his response that “a safety plan was discussed and formulated,” but disagreed with the characterization made in the complaint. Both parties agreed that Paul Pine went back to school on Oct. 19, 2022.

The complaint went on to say that the child experienced further mental distress less than a week later after a “prank on a friend of his” caused him distress, leading to self-harm and a trip to the principal’s office.

“Paul was sent to Principal Muniz’s office, where Principal Muniz and ... the school counselor, performed a suicide risk assessment of Paul,” the complaint read. “They reported that Paul was despondent, withdrawn, tearful and sad.”

According to the complaint, the child brought up suicidal ideation again at this point. While Muniz acknowledged the meeting, he denied being present for the suicide risk assessment. Both parties acknowledged that the child was picked up from school by his father after the assessment to take him to his psychiatrist and therapist. The complaint quotes an email from Muniz, which his response acknowledges, saying it “speaks for itself.”

The email asked educators in the building to increase supervision of Paul Pine, saying that he wouldn’t be allowed to leave a classroom without supervision. Muniz also asked anyone who saw the child alone to request assistance from himself or another school official.

His parents asked for a meeting to discuss a potential Individualized Education Plan (IEP) for Pine, which was set for mid-December 2022. Earlier in December, the complaint said, Pine was found alone in a school hallway by a teacher, at which time he talked of suicide again. He told the teacher that found him that he had brought a tool from home to facilitate his suicide.

He was taken to the principal’s office again, and the LCSD2 superintendent’s office filed a petition to expel the child that day for bringing a “deadly weapon” to school. This happened before the family could discuss the expulsion with school officials. He was immediately suspended for 10 days at that time.

“Instead of recognizing that Paul’s behavior was due to his disabilities and providing him mental health services and support to address his disability related needs,” the complaint read, “the school district suspended Paul and pursued his expulsion.”

Muniz’s response acknowledged the expulsion, but denied the other allegations made in that part of the complaint. The child was let back into school later that month, and also deemed eligible for an IEP. Both parties acknowledged that, upon the child’s return to school, the security measures to ensure the child’s safety would increase.

The IEP was set to go into effect, both parties agreed, on Jan. 9, 2023. The complaint went on to describe, in detail, the moments leading up to the child’s suicide at school on that day.

The complaint said that Paul Pine was seen leaving his classroom, taught by Giordano, eight minutes before the class was set to end. Citing surveillance video, they said the child was seen leaving class early and entering the bathroom without supervision. Nearly 15 minutes later, the complaint says Giordano “briefly pauses” in front of the bathroom before talking to another staff member. The complaint calls her behavior “annoyed” and says she showed signs of “frustration.” Many sections of Muniz’s response denies characterizations of the teacher’s behavior made in the complaint.

The complaint also mentions criminal charges against Giordano made last year, which Muniz’s response says were dropped.

Muniz agreed with the complaint’s characterization of his appearance in the video, which said that he “bends down to look into the bathroom and then enters the bathroom.” Both parties agree that he found Paul Pine, began CPR, and that the child was ultimately taken to a children’s hospital in Denver, where he passed away on Jan. 12, 2023.

The family’s complaint made five claims of relief from the court for:

• “Violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act”
• “Violations of the Rehabilitation Act”
• “Violations of the Fourteenth Amendment”
• “Municipal Liability ... for violations of the Fourteenth Amendment”
• and “Wrongful death and survival of claims.”

Many of these claims were denied in Muniz’s response with the statement that it was “not asserted against this defendant and no response is necessary.” He denied many points of liability made in the complaint.

“As an affirmative defense, the plaintiffs fail to state a cause of action against this defendant for which relief can be granted,” his response read. “... As an additional affirmative defense, this defendant asserts that his acts were within the course and scope of his duties, and all actions were privileged and authorized by law.”

Among other statements in his defense, he claimed he did not “create any danger that led to the decedent’s death,” going on to conclude that “his actions were taken in good faith and were objectively reasonable.”

The answer ended with a request for the complaint to be dismissed with prejudice, which would not allow any more legal action.

Muniz is represented by Cheyenne attorney Kay Bestol. On March 27, the same day as his response, his defense also filed a jury demand, requesting a jury trial in the matter.

In the Muniz response, his defense requested any potential trial to separate the defendants named in the complaint.

If you need help, please talk to somebody. You can reach the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. Text “WYO” to Crisis Text Line at 741-741. If you don’t like the phone, consider using Lifeline Chat at 988lifeline.org.