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Former Martins Ferry Teacher Charged in Sexting Case

ST. CLAIRSVILLE — A former Martins Ferry City Schools teacher has been charged following an investigation of reports he sent an inappropriate photograph to a 14-year-old student.

Joshua O. Cusick, 26, of Martins Ferry is accused of the crime, “which relates to an inappropriate relationship between a teacher in a public school and a student,” said Belmont County Prosecutor Dan Fry.

Cusick faces one year in jail and the loss of his teaching certification if convicted on the charge of disseminating matter harmful to juveniles.

“There was some inappropriate texting going on between the two of them,” Fry said.

“It appears to have stopped for a while in the summer of 2015, then it initiated again with the new school year, and that’s when the inappropriate photograph was sent from Mr. Cusick to the young lady.

“It was all done apparently over Instagram, and once we became aware of the situation we were able to obtain two telephones from the victim, one telephone from the teacher and an iPad from the victim that is owned by Martins Ferry High School that she was using.

All four of those devices were forensically examined by (the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation), and from that examination we were able to identify the one photograph. It went from Mr. Cusick’s phone to the victim’s phone.”

Fry said law enforcement and his office became aware of the situation in April.

“A third party saw what appeared to be an inappropriate photograph on the victim’s phone and reported it to her parents, and that’s how the investigation started,” he said.

The investigation included obtaining witness statements from all involved.

“But the longest delay was the fact that we had four devices that had to be looked at forensically. That just takes time. That’s all there is to it,” Fry said.

Fry said there’s no reason to believe any other alleged victims are involved.

The charges were filed Friday in Belmont County Northern Division Court. Fry noted that the texts began fairly innocuously and eventually evolved into sexual content and a photograph.

He added there is no indication that the relationship moved beyond electronic communication to physical contact.

“He crossed a line between teachers and students, and now the consequences have to be faced,” Fry said.

Martins Ferry Superintendent Dirk Fitch said Cusick resigned during the summer.

He had been placed on paid leave when the school board learned of the matter. He said Cusick was an intervention specialist who had worked at the district for three years.

He added that teachers are discouraged from adding students on social media. Teachers may, however, have a Facebook page for their classrooms to keep track of projects and activities.

“It’s been unpleasant for everybody involved. As a district we’re just moving forward and trying to deliver the best education we can,” Fitch said.

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