Mom sues Ohio school after eighth-grade daughter was strip-searched by teachers seeking vape pen

The mother of an eighth-grade student is suing an Ohio middle school after her daughter was forced to strip to her underpants and 'held against her will' by teachers searching for vape pen. 

The family filed a lawsuit against the Willoughby Eastlake Schools Board of Education and three East Lake Middle School staff members in the US District Court for the Northern District of Ohio on December 28 regarding the incident on September 7.   

According to the lawsuit, the 8th-grade student allowed a friend to put a vape pen in her locker. Later that day,  the school’s principal questioned her in her office and then ordered an untrained nurse's aid to carry out a body search.  

Jarod Klebanow, Managing Member of Klebanow Law LLC, who is representing the family, told DailyMail.com that 'the search was not reasonable.'

'Students do not check their constitutional rights at the door when they walk into school,' the lawyer said. 'Subjecting a teenage girl to a strip search over an object which posed no threat of violence to students or staff was unreasonable and in violation of her civil rights.'

Kristen Yeckley (pictured) whose daughter was illegally strip searched by her Ohio middle school has filed a lawsuit against three school staff members at East Lake Middle School and the Willoughby-Eastlake City Schools Board of Education 

Klebanow said 'the main priority is to ensure that this does not happen to any other child moving forward. The student’s damages are still being assessed.'

The complaint states the school violated the students constitutional rights namely the Fourth and Fourteenth Amendments to the Constitution of the United States.

'Students and parents must be able to trust that public school districts and the adults working within those districts will do everything possible to protect the rights of our students, not violate those rights,' Klebanow said.

'In this instance, the district and each of the adults involved in this case failed. People say time heals all wounds, but it is important to remember that, almost always, a scar is left behind.'

East Lake Middle School Principal Colleen Blaurock, Nurse Megan Kuhlman, and Nurse's aide Rosalyn Rubertino were the three school officials named in the complaint obtained by DailyMail.com.

The suit alleges that on September 7, 2022 the eighth grader - who has two lockers - arrived at school around 8am and went directly to her gym locker to put away her belongings.

One of her lockers was for her volleyball equipment and located in the girls' locker room. The other assigned locker was in the school's hallway.

While the student was in the the girls' locker room, she was approached by another student, whose name was not released, 'to see and smoke her new vape pen,' the suit states.

The eight grade student declined, but the other girl asked if she could leave a shirt and the vape pen in her gym locker. 

The suit claims the student 'feeling uncomfortable but afraid to upset her friend, begrudgingly agreed,' before she headed to class. 

Just before lunch on the same day, the eighth grader was pulled out of class by the principal, Colleen Blaurock, who questioned her about the existence of the vape pen. 

The suit states the student 'was honest with Blaurock and told her the truth about what occurred in the girls' locker room that morning.'

Colleen Blaurock (pictured) is the principal of East Lake Middle School and one of the defendants in the case 

The principal then asked the student where the vape pen was. The student told the principal 'the vape pen was not hers, that she did not have the vape pen and that she did not know where the vape pen was,' according to the complaint.

The principal then instructed the student to accompany her to the girls' locker room where she searched her gym locker.

The suit alleges that although there was a school resource officer located in the school, the principal did not inform the officer or request the officer's assistance in the search.

During the locker search, the principal did not find any inappropriate or illegal materials. She then went to the second locker located and found a sweater, but nothing else.  

'Blaurock's searches all turned up empty, as the student had been honest about what had happened throughout the day,' the suit claims. 

'The principal subsequently admitted that the student was an honest girl who had a history of being truthful with her, would not give up the search,' according to the complaint.

After the locker searches, the principal took the student to the nurse's office. 

A photo of East Lake Middle School located in the suburb of Eastlake, Ohio 

Eastlake Middle School nurse Megan Kuhlman was not present on September 7, 2022 the day of the incident and was reportedly at a different building.  

Nurse's aide Rosalyn Rubertino was there where she is stationed on a regular basis.  According to the suit, Kuhlman is believed to be a registered nurse, but Rubertino is not a licensed registered nurse.

When the principal arrived at the nurse's office, she instructed Rubertino to search the student for the vape pen despite already checking her lockers.

'Blaurock knew that there was no reason for a strip search of the student as there was no imminent risk of harm to any students,' the suit states. 

Additionally, Blaurock also 'knew or should have known there were less invasive means of searching for the vape pen, if a more thorough search was necessary at all.'

Rubertino informed the principal that she would need to call Kuhlman to ask about the search. After she called Kulhman, she was told to conduct a body search. 

Kulhman did not explain to Rubertino what a body search meant or how to conduct one on a student, the suit.

Rubertino then asked the student to take off all of her clothes except her underpants, the complaint states.  

'Rubertino was never, and has never been, trained by anyone at the Willoughby-Eastlake School District about conducting searches of students,' the suit claims

'No policy or procedure existed at the Willoughby-Eastlake School District regarding conducting body or strip searches of students' the suit states.

While the strip-search was taking place, the principal stood outside the door and 'was aware of what was occurring inside the nurse's office,' the suit states.

The student asked Rubertino why she had to take her clothes off. The student was not given an option to leave or refuse the search, the complaint said and Rubertino ignored the students question. 

'Feeling helpless, the student took off her clothes down to her underpants,' according to the suit. 'Rubertino then looked at the student from numerous angles. Rubertino did not find anything.'

'The student then asked Rubertino if she could put her bra back on,' court documents reveal.

 Rubertino told the student to wait while she was still undressed with no bra on, while she went outside the room to speak to the principal, the complaint states. 

The nurses aide returned and then proceeded to check the student's eyes with a UV light before telling her she could get dressed. 

According to the court documents, 'Kulhman subsequently admitted that she would have never strip searched the student in light of the circumstances presented.'

'She said her prior procedure for conducting a search was to ask the student to hold their clothes tight to their skin and if an object becomes visible under the student's clothes, ask the student to remove the item and hand it to her,' the suit claims.

Jarod Klebanow, Managing Member of Klebanow Law LLC, (pictured) is representing the family, told DailyMail.com 'the search was not reasonable.' He filed a lawsuit on behalf of the family against the Willoughby Eastlake Schools Board of Education and three East Lake Middle School staff members which were filed in the US District Court for the Northern District of Ohio on December 28th

Court documents reveal that 'Kulhman failed to instruct Rubertino of how she had handled searches in the past and instead told her to just conduct a 'body search.''

'It is Kulhman's responsibility and duty to protect students' rights and as the nurse of the school, ensure that proper search procedures are followed to protect students' rights,' the suit states. 

'It is Blaurock's responsibility and duty to protect students' rights and as the principal of the school, ensure that proper search procedures are followed to protect students' rights.'

Court documents state that 'instead of requiring Kulhman to drive the short distance to the Middle School to conduct the search herself, Blaurick passed that duty off to an unlicensed, untrained aide, who took it upon herself to strip search a student who posed no risk to the school. 

Kulhman fully acknowledged that a strip search of the student was inappropriate, the suit said.

The superintendent of the Willoughby-Eastlake School District subsequently admitted that he would need to get employees trained in the proper procedure to search students, acknowledging that the strip search should not have occurred. 

Following the strip search, the student was then suspended from school.  

The student's rights were violated as Kuhlman admitted there was less invasive search tactics routinely used within the Willoughby Eastlake School District, the complaint states.

Additionally, the court documents claim that the students rights were violated as an unlicensed, untrained aide was tasked with conducting her strip search.

'The acts and conduct of Defendants have been in wanton and reckless disregard of the rights and feelings of the student,' the complain states.

The lawyer said the student returned to school following the two-day suspension but said he was 'unsure about the status of the three school officials.' 

'The next step will be to receive a responsive pleading from the defendants,' Klebanow told DailyMail.com.

The lawyer said the girl's mother, Kristen Yeckley, was not available when DailyMail.com attempted to reach out to her.

When asked how the student was doing since the disturbing ordeal, Klebanow told DailyMail.com. 'As you can imagine, she is still struggling with what occurred. She has a strong support system at home which will hopefully help her continue to heal,' he said.