Dominic Conti: Westlake High School Class President Protects Sister From Football Player’s Sexual Harassment, Gets Suspended

Dominic Conti said he was protecting his sister from a football player who had repeatedly sexually harassed her, but it was instead Conti who found himself suspended by Westlake High School after the incident.

Now the incident has sparked a national controversy as Conti has come forward, leading to accusations that Westlake Principal Ron Lipari is giving preferential treatment toward the popular football team.

Conti, the senior class president who has a 4.4 GPA, said he got into an altercation with a football player who was sexually harassing his 15-year-old sister.

Dominic Conti said he and his sister went to Westlake High School administrators many times, but got no help.

“I’m a victim of sexual harassment,” said Conti’s sister, a Westlake freshman who didn’t give her name in an interview with CBS Los Angeles. “And you know what, [the sexual harassment] it is not okay.”

Despite the attempts to stop the behavior, the football player again harassed Conti’s sister in October, she claims.

“He begins asking me to do things to his private parts — many things to his private parts – and I begin to tell him no and I would never, ever do that,” said Dominic’s sister.

Dominic Conti and his father then found a security guard and went to confront the football player, who reportedly attacked them.

“That’s when [the player] lunged at me and my dad and he threw a punch. In self defense, I pushed down his arm.”

Larry Conti, the father of the students, said he is afraid that school administrators are giving preferential treatment to football players. He said the behavior stems back to an August incident in which several players were accused of hazing during a team trip to Hawaii, though none ever faced charges.

During the team’s stay at the Hyatt Place Waikiki, about 25 Westlake High School seniors reportedly forced their way into a room with five freshmen and assaulted them. A prosecutor later declined to press charges.

“I felt a little upset with the school [regarding Hawaii.] The boy was just a process, he is part of the culture of that school,” Larry Conti said.

Dominic Conti said he told Westlake High School principal Ron Lipari that he did not regret protecting his sister.