The family of a Florida university track and field athlete is suing her school after she committed suicide, claiming her cruel coach subjected her to a two-year campaign of bullying.
Julia Pernsteiner, 23, who had a learning disability, was cruelly taunted by former Jacksonville University track and field coach Ron Grigg before he dropped her from the team without notice, according to a lawsuit.
Her parents claim the university ignored her calls for help after her removal from the team in September 2021, which led to her suicide two months later.
The athlete ran the track as an outlet to cope with her studies, which she struggled with as her disability affected her literacy and numeracy skills.
But Grigg is said to have found a “special satisfaction” in humiliating her, often boldly shaming her while labeling her “retarded”.
Julia Pernsteiner, 23, was found dead in her dorm room on November 8, 2021 after an apparent suicide
The 23-year-old was cruelly mocked by former Jacksonville University track and field coach Ron Grigg before he ditched her from the team without notice
Teammates have recalled that coach Ron Grigg, pictured, took “particular pleasure” in bullying Pernsteiner, who suffered from a learning disability
In shocking court filings, teammates have recalled the abuse Grigg subjected the 23-year-old to after she joined the varsity careers team.
Julia endured nearly two years of brutal bullying from Grigg, including taunting her face and behind her back, in texts and emails, according to the lawsuit.
“Ron Grigg (has) particular satisfaction in humiliating Julia by calling her ‘retarded’, ‘the slowest damn runner on the team’ and ‘unable to wipe her own ass,'” the lawsuit says.
Pernsteiner stayed with the team to help her cope with her academic studies and attempted to seek help from her teammates, who also accused Grigg of similar abuse while overseeing the team.
They revealed in the court filings that he was persistently “suppressive, threatening, bullying, condescending and demeaning” towards many of the young women on the team.
But after Pernsteiner contacted former athletes at the school to share their accounts of Griggs’ behavior with school officials, the university later said it could not substantiate the allegations when it opened an investigation.
Although he has been employed by the university since 1998, numerous members of the track and field team have painted a disturbing picture of his behavior since then, in which he routinely disparaged those he was tasked with helping.
“Despite knowledge of Grigg’s outrageous and illegal behavior toward women on his teams, (Jacksonville University) condoned and condoned that behavior while Grigg coached winning teams,” the lawsuit reads.
After two years of Griggs harrowing bullying, Pernsteiner was kicked off the team in September 2021 without being given a reason.
Pernsteiner reportedly relied on her place on the team to get through her studies
The athlete suffered from a learning disability that affected her ability to read, write and spell
The 23-year-old athlete “slid into despair and depression” after the university ignored her calls for help
Pernsteiner contacted other former members of her track team to relay allegations of Griggs’ behavior to university officials, with numerous others reporting that he bullied women on the team
In a plea for help, she emailed the university’s athletic director in October 2021, asking to be rejoined the team as she had to rely on her athletic life to cope.
“I just don’t know where to go from here,” she said in the email accompanying the lawsuit.
“I would like to stay and work on improving my grades. I just can’t do it myself. I seek advice on how to proceed.’
However, the athlete’s cries for help were completely ignored by the faculty. After no one replied to her email, Pernsteiner “slid into despair and depression.”
On November 8, 2021, the 23-year-old was found dead in her dorm room after an apparent suicide.
“In the 22 months prior to her death, Julia suffered from pain, mental anguish, panic attacks, anxiety and depression,” the lawsuit reads.
Before her tragic death, Pernsteiner had made persistent attempts to bring Grigg’s behavior to light, including by contacting local media.
Local independent journalist Samantha Mathers said she spoke to Pernsteiner several times in late October 2021, just weeks before she took her own life.
During the investigation into the claims, Mathers said she was heartbroken to hear the news of the 23-year-old’s death when Pernsteiner’s mother later reached out.
“As soon as she said, ‘I’m just trying to get answers about my daughter,’ and she explained, I knew exactly what she was talking about and my heart just dropped,” she told FirstCoastNews.
Mathers added that she corresponded with a former athletic trainer who knew Grigg, who told her she “witnessed a lot of things” the female athletes said.
“The body shaming, the fear, the athletes were very scared.
“She said she saw his athletes have a fear for their weight that no other athlete at the school had.”
Grigg subsequently resigned from his position in the wake of the scandal, and the university said it was offering “additional mandatory training” to its coaches.
In an emailed statement to Fox News in response to the lawsuit, Jacksonville University said, “Jacksonville University’s students, faculty and staff continue to mourn Julia’s tragic death and our hearts extend to the Pernsteiner family for her loss.
‘In accordance with university policy, we do not comment on pending litigation.’