Long Beach Unified Awarded $2.5M in Banks Recanted Rape Case

A judge Friday awarded Long Beach Unified School District $2.6 million from a former student who falsely accused Poly High football star Brian Banks of raping her, for which the district paid her damages.

The district announced the decision late Friday in an e-mailed statement. It had paid student Wanetta Gibson $750,000 after Banks was convicted of raping her on campus. When the football player with college and pro promise was released from prison, Gibson contacted him on Facebook and later recanted the rape charge in a secretly recorded meeting. 

"The Los Angeles Superior Court judgment in favor of the school district
includes $750,000 that LBUSD paid to settle the case with Gibson," the district announced late Friday. "The judgment also includes attorney fees, interest and $1 million in punitive damages."

LBUSD Superintendent swiftly commented after the decision.

"The court recognizes that our school district was a victim in this
case," Steinhauser said in a statement.  "This
judgment demonstrates that when people attempt to defraud our school
system, they will feel the full force of the law."

Media reports at the time quoted Gibson on a secret recording saying she wanted to clear his name but worried she'd have to repay the district. Banks had lost what likely were his best years on the field, but he tried out for a few NFL teams and signed in April with the Atlanta Falcons. Sports Illustrated columnist Peter King wrote that Banks didn't mind his "long-shot odds of making the Falcons." 

The district said it would pursue getting its money back. "Though Gibson remains in hiding, the ruling allows LBUSD to recoup the judgment amount from her future wages and property."

Read the court judgment attached to this story.