Substitute under investigation

BELLEVUE — Bellevue Schools announced one of its substitute teachers is under police investigation and was removed from its staff list. That's according to a district letter circulating online. The letter, signed by superintendent Troy Roth and addressed to district families and staffers, states that the district was notified about the investigation on Wednesday morning. "We take any breach of professional conduct seriously," Roth said. "The well-being of our students and staff is our top priority. We expect all individuals in our schools to adhere to our code of conduct, and we hold them accountable to those expectations." Roth added all of his staff go through fingerprinting and background checks before employment. He said the district is committed to its safe and welcoming environment, and it will continue to evaluate its hiring and vetting processes. Roth said the teacher worked primarily in the high school. Neither law enforcement nor the school district have identified the teacher nor specified the nature of the allegations. "As this is an active investigation and out of respect for all involved, I cannot share further details at this time," he wrote. The Register sent records requests to the school district, Bellevue police and the Sandusky County Sheriff's Office. A "call for service" report from the sheriff's office indicates that district school resource officer, Deputy Eric Burt, responded to a "juvenile incident" at Bellevue High School on Wednesday morning, but the report did not provide further clarity on the nature of the incident. Bellevue police Chief Marc Linder told the newspaper Thursday that his agency was conducting an investigation. "At this time, there is an active investigation into a substitute teacher for alleged misconduct," Linder said. "But under (state law), we will not be releasing the investigation report until the suspect is either charged or cleared of any wrongdoing."