Matthew Schlegel Case: Acquittal, Civil Lawsuit, and New Maryland Law

The Matthew Schlegel case ended in acquittal. A jury in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, found the former Severna Park Elementary School third-grade teacher not guilty on 18 of 21 sexual abuse counts in June 2025, and prosecutors dismissed the three remaining misdemeanor charges two weeks later. Schlegel was released after more than a year in jail, restored to the Anne Arundel County Public Schools payroll in a non-student assignment, and now faces a civil lawsuit filed by one alleged victim’s family. The case also prompted a new Maryland law changing how school systems must respond to abuse allegations.

The Charges

Anne Arundel County police opened a Child Abuse Unit investigation in March 2024 into allegations involving Schlegel and several of his students.¹ The school system pulled him from the classroom on March 15, 2024, and reassigned him to a role with no student contact. A long-term substitute took over three days later.²

Parents received a letter that month saying the teacher had been removed, but it gave no reason. Roughly two months passed before criminal charges were filed, and that silence became a lasting source of anger among families.²

Police arrested Schlegel at his Severna Park home on May 16, 2024, a day after charges were filed.¹ Prosecutors eventually secured a 55-count indictment covering eight students and spanning August 2022 through March 2024, with charges ranging from second-degree assault to sexual abuse of a minor.³ He was held without bail at the Jennifer Road Detention Center.⁴

The Trial and the Verdict

Trial began May 19, 2025, in Anne Arundel County Circuit Court. Before the jury was sworn in, the State’s Attorney’s Office dropped 22 counts involving three alleged victims. Prosecutor Anastassia Prigge said testifying would be “detrimental to their mental health.”⁵ Twelve more counts were dismissed during the proceedings, and the jury was left with 21 charges involving five students.³

The trial ran about a month. Eleven child witnesses testified. Schlegel took the stand in his own defense and denied every allegation.⁶ After 19 hours of deliberation across three days, the jury returned a partial verdict on June 17, 2025. Schlegel was acquitted on 18 counts: seven counts of sexual abuse of a minor, five counts of third-degree sexual offense, five counts of fourth-degree sexual offense, and one count of second-degree assault.⁷ The jury deadlocked on three misdemeanor counts of second-degree assault.

The next day, a judge released Schlegel on his own recognizance, with the condition that he have no unsupervised contact with any minor other than his own children. He had been jailed for more than a year. State’s Attorney Anne Colt Leitess said she had expected the release given the time already served and the reduction to misdemeanor charges.⁴

Why the Remaining Charges Were Dropped

On July 1, 2025, prosecutors entered a nolle prosequi on the three deadlocked counts, and the judge dismissed them. The jury had split 10-to-2 in favor of acquittal on those charges.⁸ Leitess said her office saw no “reasonable expectation of securing a conviction in a retrial” and added, “We will not risk harm to children for the sake of a charge or case.”⁹ Prigge said “the state did not see a path forward.”¹⁰

Where Schlegel Stands Now

Schlegel had been suspended without pay during the investigation and trial.¹¹ After the acquittal and dismissal, Anne Arundel County Public Schools lifted the suspension. As of August 2025, the district confirmed he was back on payroll and assigned to a work location with no students present.¹²

District spokesperson Bob Mosier said AACPS was “finalizing its review of the matter consistent with our internal processes” and would make decisions about his status “in accordance with our obligations under state law.”¹³ The internal investigation had not publicly concluded as of the most recent reporting.¹¹

In September 2025, defense attorney Patrick Seidel released the results of a voluntary polygraph, calling it a “last resort” to restore his client’s reputation. The report indicated “no deception indicated” on questions about inappropriate touching or sexual contact with any Severna Park Elementary student. The examiner was not publicly identified, and polygraph results are not admissible in Maryland courts. Attorney Thiru Vignarajah, who represents families connected to the case, called polygraphs “junk science” and said “pathological liars pass polygraphs all the time.”¹⁴

The Civil Lawsuit

On May 30, 2025, before the criminal trial concluded, the mother of one alleged victim filed a civil suit in Anne Arundel County Circuit Court seeking at least $975,000 in damages. The complaint names Schlegel, Severna Park Elementary Principal Kyle Butler, and the Anne Arundel County Board of Education. It alleges the abuse of a third-grade student occurred “consistently” between August 2023 and March 2024 “in plain view of other students” and that school staff “knew or should have known” it was happening.¹⁵ Different standards of proof apply in civil court than in the criminal case that ended in acquittal.

Community Reaction

The verdict provoked a strong response in Severna Park. Bright pink signs reading “We Believe Them,” “We Stand With Our Girls,” and “End Child Sex Abuse” went up in yards, storefronts, and along main roads.¹⁶ Parents petitioned the school board to fire Schlegel and adopt new accountability policies, and additional families came forward with further allegations.¹⁷

The New Maryland Law

The case directly produced state legislation. Delegate Heather Bagnall introduced House Bill 1168, “Local School Systems – Sexual Abuse and Sexual Misconduct – Response Policy and After-Action Review,” in the 2026 session, with a companion measure (SB 685) from Senator Dawn Gile.¹⁸

The law directs the Maryland State Department of Education to develop a model response policy that local districts must adopt. It requires notification to parents as soon as feasible after a credible allegation, time-stamped webpages with non-identifying updates and resources, and an after-action review within 45 days of the conclusion of a case.¹⁷ Committee testimony explicitly named the Severna Park case and the weeks parents spent without information.

The House Ways and Means Committee heard the bill on March 10, 2026, and reported it favorably with amendments on April 9. The House passed it 132 to 0 that same day, and it was enacted during the 2026 session.¹⁸¹⁹

1
Anne Arundel County. Police Press Release
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WBAL-TV. Matthew Schlegel Severna Park Teacher Sexual Abuse of Minor Charge
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The Banner. Severna Park Elementary School Teacher Matthew Schlegel Verdict
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WBAL-TV. Matthew Schlegel Released Child Sex Abuse Trial Verdict
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WBAL-TV. Matthew Schlegel Case Alleged Victims Mother Speaks Out
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CBS News Baltimore. Maryland Anne Arundel County Matthew Schlegel Jury Deliberation
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WBAL-TV. Matthew Schlegel Child Sex Abuse Trial Verdict
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WBAL-TV. Matthew Schlegel Misdemeanor Charges Dismissed
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WBAL. Anne Arundel County Judge Dismisses Remaining Misdemeanor Charges Against Matthew Schlegel
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Capital Gazette. Matthew Schlegel Case Dismissed State Will Not Prosecute Remaining Charges
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CBS News Baltimore. Maryland Anne Arundel County Teacher Acquitted Matthew Schlegel
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WBAL-TV. Matthew Schlegel Still Employed at Location With No Students AACPS
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WBAL-TV. Group Petition Keep Matthew Schlegel Out of Classroom
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Baltimore Sun. Severna Park Teacher Polygraph Sex Abuse Acquittal
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FOX Baltimore. Family Files Lawsuit Against Matthew Schlegel Principal Severna Park Elementary
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The Banner. Matthew Schlegel Severna Park Elementary School Sex Abuse
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Maryland General Assembly. HB 1168 Committee Testimony
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Maryland General Assembly. HB 1168 Legislation Details
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Maryland Coalition Against Sexual Assault. Legislative Agenda