The Dayspring Christian Academy lawsuit is a federal case filed in January 2026 by a 2025 graduate with autism who alleges the Mountville, Pennsylvania private school allowed the headmaster’s son to bully and sexually harass him for years. In June 2026, a federal judge let most of the case move forward, and it is now heading into discovery.
Who Sued and What He Alleges
The plaintiff, identified in court filings as “CM,” filed his 26-page complaint on January 2, 2026, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. He alleges that the headmaster’s son, referred to as “LS,” targeted him because of his autism, and that the abuse escalated over years from verbal to physical to sexual.1LancasterOnline. Dayspring Christian Academy Grad’s Lawsuit Against the School Moves Forward in Federal Court
According to the complaint, LS called CM disability-related slurs including “sped” and “retard,” stabbed him with pencils, and whipped him. In January 2023, the lawsuit says LS cornered CM in a bathroom and whipped him with a belt in an incident recorded on video.2Fox Baltimore. Lawsuit Against PA School Claims Headmaster’s Son Bullied Student With Autism for Years
The most serious allegations involve a practice the complaint calls “rounding”: pinning students down in bathrooms, turning out the lights, and poking objects at and into their anus. The lawsuit alleges LS took part in rounding CM on at least two occasions and later bragged about it to other students in May 2023.3ABC News 4. Lawsuit Against PA School Claims Headmaster’s Son Bullied Student With Autism for Years The complaint says the ongoing abuse led CM to contemplate suicide in May 2025.
What the School Is Accused of Doing
The core theory of the case is that Dayspring’s administration knew about the harassment for years and did nothing meaningful about it. When CM’s family raised complaints, the lawsuit says, administrators responded with remarks like “boys will be boys” and “what do you want me to do about it?”2Fox Baltimore. Lawsuit Against PA School Claims Headmaster’s Son Bullied Student With Autism for Years
The complaint points to a 2018 email from headmaster Daniel Stone to parents of sixth-grade boys acknowledging bullying in his son’s class. Stone promised procedural changes, including adjusted lunch schedules and restricting bathroom access to one boy at a time. According to the lawsuit, those measures were never enforced.4CBS Austin. Lawsuit Against PA School Claims Headmaster’s Son Bullied Student With Autism for Years
After the rounding incidents, LS was briefly withdrawn from the school. But the lawsuit alleges the administration continued to let him attend extracurricular activities where CM was also present.2Fox Baltimore. Lawsuit Against PA School Claims Headmaster’s Son Bullied Student With Autism for Years
A Second Family’s Account
Sharon Mullin, a former nurse and administrative assistant at Dayspring, and her husband Will have publicly backed CM’s account. They allege their own son was the target of an attempted assault during a school-sanctioned outing to the Hempfield Rec Center in spring 2023, when one student grabbed him while two others, including LS, turned out the lights and stood guard at the door.1LancasterOnline. Dayspring Christian Academy Grad’s Lawsuit Against the School Moves Forward in Federal Court
Sharon Mullin says she was let go from her job in June 2025 after repeatedly complaining that three boys, including LS, were being allowed to remain on campus even after officially withdrawing from the school. Her husband says she was fired specifically because she raised those concerns.
The Defendants and Their Responses
The complaint names Dayspring Christian Academy, LS, headmaster Daniel Stone, and eight individual board members: Sandy Abel, Jeff Funk, Matt Lapp, Janice Martino-Gotshall, Michael R. Myers, Art Remington, Jeff Smoker, and Kevin Zimmerman.5CourtListener. CM v. Dayspring Christian Academy Myers is singled out in the complaint for responding to reports of LS’s behavior with indifference.
LS filed his own response in March 2026. He admitted using the slurs “sped” and “retard” but said the language was mutual, denied taking part in or witnessing any rounding, and described the physical contact as friendly wrestling. He acknowledged apologizing to CM’s parents about the rounding but said the apology was not an admission of involvement.1LancasterOnline. Dayspring Christian Academy Grad’s Lawsuit Against the School Moves Forward in Federal Court
The school and its board have not commented publicly, and their attorney did not respond to a request for comment from LancasterOnline.
The Legal Claims
The complaint raises four counts. Two are federal: the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, both of which bar entities receiving federal funding from discriminating against people with disabilities. Two are state-law claims: negligence against the school and its administrators, breach of contract against Dayspring, and battery and assault against LS.613 WHAM. Lawsuit Against PA School Claims Headmaster’s Son Bullied Student With Autism for Years
Under the disability-discrimination framework the case relies on, schools receiving federal financial assistance must take reasonable action to stop disability-based harassment once officials with authority to intervene learn of it.
The June 2026 Ruling
The school moved to dismiss the case in March 2026. Judge John Michael Gallagher of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania heard argument on April 28, 2026, and ruled on June 12, 2026.5CourtListener. CM v. Dayspring Christian Academy
He denied the motion on three of the four counts, letting the Section 504 claim, the negligence claim, and the breach of contract claim proceed. He dismissed the ADA count with prejudice, ruling that because CM had already graduated, he lacked standing to seek an order forcing the school to adopt new policies and training; he could not show a “real and immediate threat of future injury.”7Justia. CM v. Dayspring Christian Academy, Order8PACER Monitor. CM v. Dayspring Christian Academy et al
Gallagher wrote that discovery may ultimately show whether school officials acted consistently with their legal obligations or were guilty of “deliberate indifference” to the harassment.1LancasterOnline. Dayspring Christian Academy Grad’s Lawsuit Against the School Moves Forward in Federal Court
Where the Case Stands Now
The case is entering discovery. Lead attorneys were ordered to meet, confer, and file a joint report by June 22, 2026, ahead of a Rule 16 scheduling conference set for June 30, 2026, before Magistrate Judge Pamela A. Carlos.8PACER Monitor. CM v. Dayspring Christian Academy et al Both sides will now exchange documents and take depositions, building the record that will determine whether the case goes to trial or resolves through settlement.