Former Starpoint Middle School teacher acquitted on attempted rape, sex abuse charges
Nov. 4—A former Starpoint Middle School teacher has been acquitted of attempted rape and sex offense charges in connection with an incident that took place at the Seneca Niagara Resort & Casino hotel in the Falls.
Brian Lasher, 56, of Amherst, a former physical education teacher at Starpoint Middle, was found not guilty of charges of third-degree criminal sex act, third-degree sex abuse and attempted third-degree rape following a bench trial before Niagara Falls City Court Judge James Faso. Lasher had previously pleaded not guilty to the charges.
"The acquittal is the result of there being no case," Lasher said. "This case should never have been brought forward. None of it was ever true."
Niagara County District Attorney Brian Seaman said his office believed the account of the young woman who leveled the allegations of sexual assault against Lasher and another man.
"We took this case and the (victim's) comments and charged this very seriously," Seaman said. "We tried the case with evidence and testimony, but the judge did not find the evidence enough to reach our burden of proof, which is beyond a reasonable doubt."
Lasher's defense attorney, Thomas Eoannou, disagreed with Seaman's assessment of the evidence in the case.
"Based on my review of the (evidence), there was never gonna be a conviction in this case," he said.
Lasher's acquittal follows a decision by prosecutors in April to dismiss similar charges against another man who was also charged in connection with the incident. Faso granted the dismissal of charges of third-degree criminal sex act, third-degree sex abuse and attempted third-degree rape lodged against John R. Scholl Jr.
Scholl's defense attorney, Terrence Connors, previously said that prosecutors acted to drop the charges against his client after he shared evidence with them that "was exculpatory." Connors declined to offer specifics about the evidence that the defense made available.
"The (Falls) police and (Niagara County) prosecutors kept an open mind as the investigation (of the alleged sexual assault) went forward and the agreed to exonerate my client," Connors said in April. "They looked at all the evidence and they agreed with us that the case should be dismissed."
The charges stemmed from what Falls Police detectives said was a "lengthy investigation into an incident that took place at the casino on Feb. 8." Detectives said that Lasher and Scholl were "accused of engaging in sexual contact with another individual without that person's consent."
At the time of Lasher's arrest, Starpoint Schools Superintendent Sean Croft wrote, in a letter to district parents, that Lasher had been placed on administrative leave, effective immediately. He has since retired.
Lasher had been a physical education teacher in the district for more than 32 years.
There have been no allegations that Lasher acted inappropriately in his capacity as a school teacher.
"I'm hoping to rebuild my life as I move into retirement," Lasher said.
