Teacher accused of sex with students to plead not guilty by reason of insanity

Stacy Schuler, athletic trainer and physical education and health teacher at Mason High School, is led away from her arraignment by Warren County Sheriff deputy Hank Arnett after she turned herself in Friday, Feb 4, 2011 in Lebanon, Ohio.

GARY STELZER/Staff photo by Gary Stelzer Stacy Schuler, athletic trainer and physical education and health teacher at Mason High School, is led away from her arraignment by Warren County Sheriff deputy Hank Arnett after she turned herself in Friday, Feb 4, 2011 in Lebanon, Ohio.

ENLARGE PHOTO

Man, 68, drowns at Caesar Creek Lake
5/26/12
Water rescues prompt warning from health officials
5/25/12
Beach Waterpark sued for failure to deliver
5/25/12
Raleigh Trammell’s defense opens in felony trial
5/25/12
UD to move satellite campus to Dublin
5/25/12
> More headlines

By Ed Richter, Staff Writer Updated 7:28 AM Wednesday, July 13, 2011

LEBANON — The former Mason teacher accused of having sex with five male students last year is changing her plea to not guilty by reason of insanity.

The motion to change the not guilty plea that Stacy Schuler entered earlier this year was filed late Monday afternoon with the Warren County Common Pleas Court, said her lawyer Charles Rittgers of Lebanon.

Rittgers said the plea change was not a defense tactic.

“It’s something I believe to be true,” he said.

As a result of the motion, Rittgers said Schuler, 33, of Springboro, will have to be examined by one or more psychologists or psychiatrists.

Under Ohio law, a person is considered insane if they are suffering from a mental defect and doesn’t know right from wrong.

Rittgers said the examination of Schuler will be to determine if she is competent to stand trial. If she is found to be competent to stand trial, a determination will have to be made whether she was insane at the time of the alleged acts, assuming if everything the state is alleging is true.

A three-day trial for Schuler was scheduled to begin Aug. 8. However, Rittgers said he “was pretty sure the trial won’t go in August.”

She was originally scheduled to go on trial in early May but was granted a continuance on April 14 by Judge Robert Peeler.

Schuler is charged with 16 felony counts of sexual battery and three counts of offenses involving underage persons, a first-degree misdemeanor, for allegedly buying or providing beer for five Mason students, most of whom were football players.

Schuler is accused of having sexual relations with the students on five different occasions at her Cobblestone Lane home in Springboro. Prosecutors said the alleged incidents occurred in 2010 on Aug. 20, 27, Sept. 10, Oct. 17 and Dec. 23.

Rittgers said Schuler has denied all of the charges.

The students have given specific details about Schuler’s residence and told Mason police that all of the alleged sexual encounters occurred in her master bedroom and bathroom. They also allegedly saw inappropriate photos on her cell phone and on her laptop computer. That information enabled police to obtain a search warrant on Feb. 2.

The allegations against Schuler were reported to school officials anonymously on Jan. 10. On Jan. 18, the 10-year Mason teacher was placed on paid administrative leave and has since resigned. Schuler is free on bond and is wearing a GPS monitoring device while living in Centerville with her parents.

Contact this reporter at (513) 696-4504 or erichter@coxohio.com.

Share this article