URBANA - A Champaign attorney has filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of an Urbana second-grader who was sexually abused by former teacher Jon White.

The child, identified as Jane Doe 2, and her mother, Julie Doe 2, are seeking $1 million each from the Normal-based Unit 5 and Urbana school districts for battery related to the abuse.

In April, White received a 48-year term from a Champaign County judge and an additional 12 years from a McLean County judge. He pleaded guilty to sexually abusing eight Urbana students and two at Normal's Colene Hoose Elementary School in a plea agreement that avoided a jury trial.

White taught at Colene Hoose from 2003 to 2005. He left after a mother complained that he was following her daughter. His departure came with a letter of recommendation from Unit 5.

At Thomas Paine Elementary School in Urbana, White played what has been referred to as "the tasting game" with female students.

The new lawsuit, filed by Champaign attorney Ellyn Bullock, names White, both school districts and school administrators.

Defendants include Jim Braksick, former Hoose principal; Alan Chapman, former Unit 5 superintendent; Dale Heidbreder, an assistant principal at Hoose; Ed Heinemann, the current Hoose principal; and John Pye, the district's assistant superintendent of operations and human resources.

Attorney Jim Kearns of Urbana will represent Unit 5. He was recommended by the district's insurance company, Ohio-based Cincinnati Insurance, Unit 5 Superintendent Gary Niehaus said.

"He's reviewing the complaint," Niehaus said Friday. Kearns likely will meet with the school board Aug. 13, Niehaus said.

White's attorneys and Urbana district officials could not be reached Friday.

The lawsuit claims Unit 5 was aware of - and failed to report - problems with White while he was at Hoose and at Brigham Elementary in Bloomington.

The lawsuit alleges that White was disciplined by Unit 5 for inappropriate sexual conduct with female students and the district later "created a falsely positive letter of reference for White which concealed known prior teacher-on-student sexual harassment and/or sexual grooming and/or sexual abuse of minor female students."

Bullock further claimed Unit 5 failed to document the allegations in White's personnel record. Unit 5 officials are accused of passing a known sexual harasser to another school district.

The lawsuit claims Urbana school officials failed to thoroughly investigate White before hiring him as a first-grade teacher, and failed to report continued abusive contact with students after his move to Urbana.

The former teacher admitted to blindfolding students and engaging them in a game that required them to lick toppings from what they believed was a banana.

Urbana school officials are accused of allowing White to remove students from an after-school program and lunch breaks to come to his classroom for the sexual activity.

Also part of the lawsuit is a claim that the Urbana district is guilty of a hate crime under state law by allowing White to use his authority as a teacher to abuse the student.

The lawsuit claims that Urbana and Unit 5 violated federal law by failing to protect the student from sexual discrimination and harassment by the former teacher.