The defense in the teacher sex scandal case rested in Warren County Common Pleas Court Wednesday afternoon after a forensic toxicologist and forensic psychologist testified Schuler couldn’t help herself when she allegedly plied five male students with alcohol and had sex with them on five different occasions in her Springboro home in the fall of 2010. Schuler, 33, is charged with 16 felony counts of sexual battery and three misdemeanor offenses involving underage persons. She changed her plea this summer from not guilty to not guilty by reason of insanity.
Dr. Kenneth Manges, a forensic and clinical psychologist, said he determined Schuler did not know right from wrong during the interludes with the young men because of a host of medical and psychological problems that were exacerbated by her use of Zoloft and consuming mass quantities of alcohol.
Based on her history — going back to her childhood — of maintaining a jam-packed schedule of activities Manges said he determined she was hypo manic and bipolar. Her polycycstic ovary disease, irritable bowel syndrome and Vegan diet - along with the drug Zyloft and copious amounts of alcohol - rendered her unable to determine right from wrong, he said.
“It’s almost like the perfect storm, that she has a host of conditions that magnify and increase the personality issue as in being over the top in terms of lack of sleep, focusing of attention and the difficulty in being able to address issues she might have (otherwise) in terms of nutrition or decision making she might have,” he said. “We have the IBS, we have the vegan issue and we have the polycycstic disease in a person who has a bipolar condition coupled with a person who has been prescribed with Zoloft... that exacerbates and makes worse the mania in people who already have a proclivity for that.”
Dr. Harry Plotnick, a lawyer and forensic toxicologist, testified Schuler’s excessive alcohol consumption on the nights the students visited caused the aberrant sexual behavior on her behalf and accounted for her amnesia regarding the incidents.
Assistant Prosecutor Terry Hiett challenged both doctors on the fact Schuler should have realized there was a problem after the first time she found students sleeping on her couches and had no recall of the events.
“I’m put on notice the first time right?,” she said. “Doesn’t it eventually get to the point of shame on me?”
Manges, who administered a battery of tests on Schuler, reviewed transcripts of interviews with three of the alleged victims and a host of other information about Schuler’s life, said she has only partial recall of the first four interludes and doesn’t remember the fifth visit by students at all.
Earlier in the day, Schuler was portrayed as a gifted, passionate teacher who wanted nothing more than to help and support everyone she knew.
The defense called 11 witnesses to the stand, all of whom said they could not believe what their teacher and friend is accused of doing.
Tyler Walton, a former student who flew here from Fort Meyers, Fla. where he attends college, said Schuler helped him at a time of extreme need, when his mother died just before his freshman year and when he decided to admit he was bisexual.
“She helped me realize I am an amazing person and my life is worth living,” he said of Schuler, whom he referred to as his “surrogate mother.”
Madison Ewing traveled from Kentucky to tell Judge Robert Peeler that without Schuler she doesn’t know how she would have made it through her three years at Mason. She broke down in tears as she recounted how Schuler helped her through a very bad situation.
Another former student, Daniel Santos, who graduated in 2010, said Schuler helped him through a deep depression and helped him kick a drug habit.
“It is safe to say had it not been for her, I may very well not be here today,” he said.
The five young men who have accused Schuler all described her as being flirtacious, but Emily Shiverski, who taught with Schuler for six years, said she was always smiling, happy and upbeat, and teenage boys might take that the wrong way.
When asked if Schueler was a pushover, she said Schuler did not like confrontation and it was hard for her to sometimes put her foot down. However, she said dealing with teenagers is not easy.
“Teenagers are like wild animals,” she said. “They can smell your fear.”
The prosecution will call an expert Thursday to refute the defense experts’ assertions, then closing arguments will start and a decision may be rendered by the end of the day.
Contact this reporter at (513) 696-4525 or dcallahan@coxohio.com.
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