HOUSTON (CN) - A high school dance coach's sexual abuse of a student should have been reported to police by the coach's husband, the now-adult victim claims in court.
Alma White sued Jeremiah Feenstra on April 22 in Harris County Court.
White, 22, is now a University of Houston student who has trust issues and sees counselors to deal with what her former dance coach Amanda Michelle Feenstra put her through, White's attorney Aubrey Pittman said.
Feenstra pleaded guilty in October 2013 and was sentenced to 10 years probation after admitting she had sex with White starting in spring 2009, when White was 16, until 2011, when White graduated.
Jeremiah and Amanda Feenstra are now divorced.
White and her mother also have a federal lawsuit pending against Amanda Feenstra.
The new lawsuit against Jeremiah contains lurid details about Amanda and White's relationship that started in 2009 when Amanda, then 30, was hired by Humble High School to coach dance. Humble is a Houston suburb.
At the time White was a popular dance team captain who also played tennis and was a member of the school's Christian Student Union, according to the complaint.
The dance captain was expected to work closely with the coach on new routines, White says, and Amanda began to isolate White from her teammates.
"Amanda also managed to convince Alma's mother to allow Alma to come to Amanda's house routinely under the pretext that Alma would be practicing various dance routines for the team. Jeremiah was frequently at the home when Alma was invited to visit," the complaint states.
"Eventually, Amanda and Jeremiah invited Alma to come live with Amanda and Jeremiah in the residence occupied by the two of them."
After White moved in, she says, Amanda went from kissing and hugging her, to performing cunnilingus on her, shaving her vagina for her and using sex toys on her as they watched porn that Amanda bought.
"Eventually, Amanda's relentless mind control over Alma succeeded in making Alma her 'sex slave.' Amanda made Alma stay in the guest bedroom at Amanda's home, where Amanda would go downstairs to have sex with Alma, at will," the complaint states.
White claims that Jeremiah turned a blind eye to the "unusual amount of time" she and Amanda were spending together. "He also noticed Amanda whispering in hushed tones to Alma," the complaint states.
White says that after receiving guidance from her church she finally told someone about her relationship with Amanda, and it was reported to school officials, leading to Amanda's arrest on felony charges.
Even after Jeremiah found out what was going on, he did not tell police, "revealing that the interests of his abusive wife and her desire to avoid scandal were vastly superior to Alma's interests," the lawsuit states.
Pittman said White and her mother want to hold Jeremiah and Amanda accountable to help prevent others from going through what happened to her and ensure that school is a safe haven for children.
The Whites seek punitive damages for gross negligence and infliction of emotional distress. Mary King-White also sued for bystander damages.
White claims the sex toys Amanda used on her gave her vaginal sores "because the toys were unclean" and she needed multiple surgeries.
She also wants Jeremiah to pay her medical and counseling bills.
Pittman said White was an innocent virgin before Amanda victimized her.
"She mentally manipulated a young lady who was 16 at the time had never had any kind of relationship with anyone, had never had a boyfriend, never even had a sexual conversation with anyone. She was a churchgoing person who was taught by her family and her religion that she shouldn't have any kind of sexual relationship," Pittman told Courthouse News.
Pittman said he does not know if Jeremiah has an attorney. Court records do not show whether he has retained counsel.
A phone number for Jeremiah is no longer in service.
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