Hudson residents voice outrage at decision to allow rape suspect to stay in school
Community members on Monday voiced their dismay to the Hudson Board of Education that an 18-year-old student charged with raping a 9-year-old has been allowed to continue attending Hudson High School as his senior year winds down.
Charges filed against Jeremiah Earl Stoehr include one count of rape, two counts of kidnapping, a charge of gross sexual imposition and a count of disseminating content harmful to a juvenile. The charges are connected to a Dec. 2 incident.
On Feb. 14, Stoehr pleaded not guilty to all charges. The case, which is before Judge Alison Breaux in Summit County Common Pleas Court, has evoked outraged responses from residents who said they were shocked to learn that Stoehr's bail arrangements include accommodations permitting him to attend classes and some other school and athletic functions.
"I know the parents are upset," Superintendent Dana Addis said in a prepared statement preceding public comments Monday evening. "Even in the most trying times, we have a responsibility to educate our students. Measures have been taken, we can't say what due to privacy, to protect students." He added that Stoehr, while he is permitted by court order to do so, will refrain from attending any after-school activities such as graduation.
Addis emphasized to the roughly 50 people in attendance at the meeting that the school district has provided key information about the case to staff and families. He reiterated that the alleged incidents happened outside of the Hudson City Schools and off school property.
Stoehr's attorney, Maxwell Hiltner, said in an email that Stoehr is "adamant that he didn't do any of those things, or commit any of these offenses whatsoever."
But members of the public told the school board and administration that ensuring students' safety is more important than allowing Stoehr to return to regular classes.
"Prosecutors do not indict and charge unless they are confident," resident Bill Klausman said. "The student is ordered to wear a GPS. This suggests he is a threat. This is bad publicity for the schools."
Samuel Stevenot, a junior at the high school, said the move to allow Stoehr to remain in school was "disgusting to me and my fellow students." He noted that in 2021, students making racist remarks while playing a phone app game were suspended. "This is worse," he said.
Samuel told the Beacon Journal he is circulating a petition asking for alternative means of education for Stoehr; he's collected 626 signatures so far from past and present students, parents and residents. Samuel said some alternatives could have been in-school suspension, during which a student can be educated in the school but in a single room, or online alternatives.
The last day of school for the district is May 30.
John Billick, a former school board member, also asked the school board why alternatives weren't pursued.
"I am embarrassed, disappointed and ashamed by the board allowing the student to stay on campus," Billick said.
Arabella Feil said the district should have notified families about the indictments sooner than it did.
"Five months later is truly inexcusable," Feil said. "The level of shock and disappointment at this decision is off the charts. Students here are enraged. This is a place where students are supposed to feel safe. They don't."
The case docket for Stoehr was removed from the Summit County Clerk of Courts website last Thursday after Judge Alison Breaux granted a defense attorney's request to seal the documents from public view, said James Pollack, a spokesman for the Summit County Prosecutor's Office.
Reporter April Helms can be reached at ahelms@thebeaconjournal.com
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Hudson residents want district to block rape suspect from classrooms
