Hallsville School District to pay $100,000 to settle wrongful death lawsuit

The Hallsville School District will pay $100,000 to the family of a bullied teenager, according to the settlement agreement.

A federal judge on Tuesday approved the settlement between Rylie Wagner’s family and the district.

ABC 17 News obtained a copy of the agreement through a sunshine request on Friday.

Rylie’s parents said in 2017 that she took her own life because she was bullied at school, including being targeted for her gender and sexual orientation. Rylie’s mother said her daughter went to a counselor before taking her own life, but the school did not do enough to stop the problem.

The school district denied the allegations in a statement released after the settlement was approved.

“As specified in the settlement agreement, the District denies any and all allegations of wrongdoing by the Board of Education, administrators, teachers, or other employees,” the district said. “Our District takes all allegations of bullying seriously and completes a full investigation into every report of such allegations.”

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