Police said David Lowe, 52, attacked the 16-year-old girl on camera at home in Berea, Ohio, on September 28, according to an incident report seen by Newsweek.
Lowe was charged with sexual imposition the following day, according to local television station WOIO. He pleaded not guilty and posted a $50,000 bond.
Lieutenant Tom Walker of the Berea Police Department said: “The Ohio Virtual Academy reported to our department that a female high school student was attending class online at her home in Berea when a male identified as her stepfather came up behind her wearing only his underwear and rubbed his crotch against the back of her head.
“The teacher seeing this obscene behavior reached out to our department knowing that the student was attending online here at her home in Berea and made us aware of what she had seen.”
Walker said cameras capturing people’s homes during online schooling means that others could sometimes become concerned about what they may witness.
“See something, say something,” Walker urged. “As law enforcement officials, it’s our job to protect the children in our community and we want to be aware of any obscene behaviors that occur like this.”
The Ohio Virtual Academy said counseling is available to its students following the incident.
The school’s head, Kristin Stewart, told Newsweek: “Ohio Virtual Academy is aware of the unfortunate incident last week, and immediately reached out to the parents, and is continuing to work closely with the appropriate authorities.
“OHVA takes its obligations as a mandatory reporter seriously. We offered, and are continuing to make available, access to licensed school counselors and the availability of outside clinical staff through our partnership with Syntero.”
WOIO reported that Lowe is a registered sex offender. He is listed on various crime tracking websites seen by Newsweek including the National Sex Offender public website—which is coordinated by the Department of Justice and allows Americans to search for the latest information about the identity and location of known sex offenders across all U.S. states.
According to the Ohio Alliance to End Sexual Violence (OAESV), more than 30,000 children across the state are involved in a substantiated case of child abuse or neglect every year.
Of those cases, some 5,000 are related to sexual abuse specifically—although it’s feared that many more children are suffering in silence because the organization says only 38 percent of child victims of sexual abuse go on to tell someone what is happening to them.
As the group points out: “Children are never to blame for sexual abuse and are not responsible for stopping or preventing it. It’s the responsibility of every adult.”
The OAESV website contains useful information and resources for victims or anyone who is concerned that a child may be at risk in Ohio.
If you or someone you know has been sexually abused, please contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 800-656-HOPE (4673).
