Steubenville Principal Strikes Deal, Ducks Trial

She'll do community service work instead
By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff
Posted Jan 9, 2014 10:13 AM CST
Steubenville Principal Strikes Deal, Ducks Trial
Lynnett Gorman sits in court, Jan. 8, 2014 in Steubenville, Ohio.   (AP Photo/Steubenville Herald-Star, Mark Law)

Prosecutors have agreed to drop their case against West Elementary School Principal Lynnett Gorman, thanks to a last-minute deal that will see Gorman complete 40 hours of community service, and speak to her staff about recognizing child abuse, the Toledo Blade reports. Gorman was one of five adults indicted in the wake of the Steubenville rape case. Gorman was actually accused in an unrelated incident; she didn't act on rumors about a party where a 14-year-old girl was allegedly assaulted by two baseball players.

"Lynnett Gorman believes that she committed no crime,” the parties said in a statement approved by the judge. “She also believes that if she had the ability to go back to April 2012, she would have acted differently." Gorman's trial would have begun yesterday if not for the last-minute deal. The state attorney general said the deal was in the "best interests" of the community. "Ms. Gorman will be part of the work that is being done in Steubenville to educate students and school officials," he said, according to NBC News. (More Lynette Gorman stories.)

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