CHILLICOTHE, Ohio — The Chillicothe Police Department (CPD) has released a partial, heavily redacted report nearly two weeks after initiating an investigation into inappropriate text messages between a teacher’s aide and a student, withholding key details, despite a 2022 Ohio Supreme Court ruling mandating transparency.
The investigation began March 20 when the Ross County Sheriff’s Office received a complaint from Southeastern Superintendent Brian Justice, which was later handed to CPD. According to the report, dated March 26, “Detective [sic] was assigned to an investigation, which had initially been reported to the Ross County Sheriff’s Office ….” A narrative by Detective Christopher Fyffe states, “…. Detective opened an investigation into a complaint filed by the Ross/Pike Educational Service District … the complaint involved a Teachers Aid at Southeastern, having inappropriate text conversations with a student … these text messages were taking place during school hours, and while the Teachers Aid was actively working at the school.”
CPD took nearly two weeks to release even this limited information, and the report obscures critical details, including the specific school within the Southeastern School District and the teacher’s aide’s name and job duties. This redaction stands in apparent violation of the 2022 Ohio Supreme Court decision in State ex rel. Myers v. Meyers. In that case, Derek Myers, then-editor-in-chief of Scioto Valley Guardian, successfully sued Chillicothe Police Chief Ron Meyers after the department illegally withheld and redacted police reports. The court sided with Myers, ruling that such redactions were illegal under Ohio’s Public Records Act.
Neither CPD nor the Ross/Pike Educational Service District responded to requests for comment by news time. The investigation remains ongoing, with no additional details released.