The case of a former Miami University student who pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct for posting a “Top Ten Ways to Get Away with Rape” flier in a dormitory bathroom just keeps getting more controversial.
The controversy began Nov. 8, when Butler County Area 1 Court Judge Robert Lyons took the guilty plea and ordered all record of the case — including the defendant’s name — be sealed from public view. The MU police chief says he is bound by Lyons’ order and can’t release the name. The Butler County Prosecuting Attorney’s office did not object to the sealing of the file.
The Cincinnati Enquirer entered the picture six days later. It sued Lyons in the Ohio Supreme Court, saying he sealed the file without giving the newspaper a chance to argue for public access. In his answer — filed by the Prosecuting Attorney’s office on Dec. 13 — Lyons stood by his actions. Furthermore, he wrote that “there was no plea” in the case.
Now we know where that came from. On that very same day, the case was back in Lyons’ court for reconsideration. This time, prosecutors agreed to drop the charge, and Lyons ruled it so. And, once again, he sealed the file, and no one present objected. The Enquirer reported on the dismissal Jan. 9.
Prosecuting Attorney Mike Gmoser won’t say why he agreed to dropping the charge until the Supreme Court case is over. “Save that question, and I will give you a full and detailed statement,” he told CityBeat. “I don’t try cases in the press.”
Gmoser said he is asking the Supreme Court to dismiss The Enquirer’s suit because the issue at hand is “moot.”
