Last November, Los Angeles Unified School District lawyers fighting a civil lawsuit argued in court that a 14-year-old middle school student was mature enough to consent to having sex with her 28-year-old teacher, and that she bore some responsibility for what happened. The district’s attorneys also introduced the girl’s sexual history into the trial as part of their defense strategy.

Two legal experts sharply criticized the school district for using those tactics. They also said the case highlights a little-known conflict in California law: while the age of consent is firmly set at 18 in criminal cases, at least two appellate court rulings have found that in civil cases, it is possible to argue that a minor can consent to sex with an adult.

More: LAUSD Argued Middle Schooler Can Consent to Sex With Teacher [Updated]

The infuriating part to me is how obviously influential, dare I say coercive a teacher student relationship is between an adult and the young. For LAUSD to officially ignore & attempt to deny this obvious fact just tells me how rotten the organization is to the core. How could an educational culture even go there?

I call this actual proof of the upside down or inside out priorities there.