Insurer balks at covering cost of litigation, settlement in Pa. school webcam spying case

Insurer won’t pay legal costs in Pa. webcam spying

PHILADELPHIA — An insurance company says it won’t pay legal costs for a suburban Philadelphia school district accused in a lawsuit of spying on students through laptop webcams.

Graphic Arts Mutual Insurance Company said in a lawsuit filed last week that its personal injury policy with the Lower Merion School District doesn’t cover those costs.

The New York-based insurer filed suit against the district and the family of student Blake Robbins. The family is suing the district for alleged privacy violations over webcam images taken at home without their knowledge.

School district spokesman Doug Young said Thursday the insurance case has been referred to lawyers and would be handled appropriately.

Robbins family lawyer Mark Haltzman said the two sides met for several hours Wednesday but are far from reaching a settlement. The school district had no immediate comment Thursday on the status of negotiations.

The district says it secretly activated the webcams only to find missing laptops, but admits lax policies led it to capture 56,000 images.