Cleveland, Ohio Due to allegations that school officials did not shield them from a longstanding band director who was ultimately found guilty of sexually abusing kids, three former Solon High School students resolved claims for a total of $255,000.
According to the settlement agreements, Liberty Mutual, the district’s insurance provider, gave $85,000 to each pupil. In the settlement, Solon schools denied any misconduct.
Band director Edward Kline, who is currently serving a 3.5-year prison sentence for assaulting band students for more than ten years, is the target of the claims, which were filed in federal court in Cleveland.
Kline oversaw the band program for eighth-grade through high school pupils. From 2003 to 2018, he was a teacher.
According to the cases, district officials were aware of accusations against Kline as early as 2005 but chose not to look into them. The claims claim that complaints against Kline increased starting in 2013 and persisted until his arrest in 2020.
The children said that at a band camp, a supper for top students, and while Kline was by himself in his classroom, he grabbed them.
In the end, Solon police discovered that Kline had mistreated over a dozen pupils between 2003 and 2014. The pupils were between the ages of 12 and 18.
In addition to one allegation of sexual imposition, Kline entered a guilty plea to eleven charges of gross sexual imposition. It is anticipated that he will stay behind bars until August 22.
At first, Solon school officials denied the settlements, claiming they did not have any documentation of the deals.
Days after Cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer prevailed in a similar public-records action against the Berea City School District in the Ohio Court of Claims, officials released the documents on Tuesday.
In another instance, Berea administrators declined to make public a $175,000 settlement deal in a lawsuit involving sexual abuse and hazing at a football camp.
Berea’s lawyers contended that since the district’s insurance company negotiated and covered the deal, it lacked any documentation. A judge and special master from the Ohio Court of Claims disagreed, arguing that the district is required to divulge the records since they are public.
Non-disclosure clauses were included in the settlements for Berea and Solon.
