Judge dismisses lawsuit against Fostoria schools

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BOWLING GREEN — A Wood County judge has dismissed a lawsuit brought against the Fostoria school district and several administrators by a student who was accused and later was cleared of trying to set a fire at Fostoria Middle School.

Tyra K. Settles, who was 14 at the time of the May, 2008, fire, and her grandmother and mother filed the complaint in May.

The lawsuit claimed that the school district was “negligent, reckless, and reflected a total disregard for the present and future well-being” of Ms. Settles.

Common Pleas Judge Reeve Kelsey ruled that the school district did not have a legal duty to protect the student's reputation or prevent false criminal charges from being filed against her.

“… Fostoria Schools did not have a duty to perform its own investigation or control the conduct of those investigating the fire and filing the criminal charges against Ms. Settles because doing so would have been a criminal offense,” the judge wrote.

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