Sibley, Iowa — There will be no change of venue in a high-profile civil case in Osceola County.
Judge Carl Petersen made that ruling this week in the civil case brought against the Sibley-Ocheyedan School District on behalf of a boy who was allegedly sexually abused by a former teacher at the Sibley-Ocheyedan Middle School.
The civil suit alleges that the Sibley-Ocheyedan Community School District was negligent in hiring Kyle Ewinger, the former teacher and coach who is accused of having sexual contact with a student and that they knew or should have known that Ewinger posed a safety risk to the children entrusted to him. They also say that three other Iowa school districts knew or should have known about similar behavior in their districts and should have passed that information along. The other districts named are the Sioux City, Mediapolis, and Akron-Westfield Community School Districts.
An attorney for the boy and his mother filed the change of venue request, citing support for Ewinger at a public hearing held by Sibley-Ocheyedan, media coverage of the case, and affidavits of six allegedly disinterested citizens of Osceola County saying they would be prejudiced to serve as jurors in this case.
Judge Petersen wrote that since the case has already been continued, the request for change of venue is untimely unless there are extenuating circumstances. Petersen says that the plaintiffs also failed to prove that potential jurors would be prejudiced.
Ewinger faces a criminal trial on the alleged crime at Sibley-Ocheyedan, which at this point is scheduled in December. Earlier this year, Ewinger was sentenced to 55-85 years in prison in a Nebraska case in which he was found guilty of sexual contact with a boy under the age of 12.
