‘Pretty terrible;’ Neighbors sympathize with custodian after child admits to false accusations

WEST MILTON — More legal action filed against a local school custodian accused of sexually assaulting a student could be dismissed soon.

>> PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Case dismissed for elementary school custodian accused of sexually assaulting student

The family involved in a federal civil case against Jerry North has asked the United States District Court of the Southern District of Ohio’s Western Division to dismiss their case against North without prejudice, according to court records filed Tuesday. At this time, a ruling hasn’t been made on that request.

This came a day after News Center 7 reported that Miami County Prosecutors dismissed the case against Jerry North after the juvenile victim admitted to, in large part, fabricating the allegations against North.

In a statement to News Center 7, North’s attorney said, “From the beginning, these allegations were based on complete lies. Professionals should not be so easily fooled by baseless fabrications like those made in this case. Real people’s lives can be ruined.

“(That’s) pretty terrible to have to go through something like that,” Erin Brady told News Center 7′s Mike Campbell about the case on Tuesday. “Seems like he might have to move somewhere else and hopefully it wouldn’t follow him.”

>> Tanker cars carrying ethanol derail in Darke County

Gary Wallace said he doesn’t “know how you fix that.”

As we showed you on News Center 7 at 5:00, the entire episode shocked West Milton residents but the dismissal of charges had a lot of people wondering about the whole ordeal.

“No innocent person should have to go through that,” Stephen Qualls said.

The federal case against North could be dismissed as soon as tomorrow. News Center 7 has also reached out to the Miami County Prosecutor to learn if any legal trouble could be directed toward the student who made the false claims.

©2024 Cox Media Group