Charges dismissed against Vermilion teacher in illegal gambling case

Charges of running an illegal gambling operation have been dismissed against Vermilion High School teacher Kristina Edmison, who was indicted earlier this year on several felony charges in Cuyahoga County. Edmison, 47, of Sheffield Lake, is now back at work, Vermilion Schools Superintendent David Hile said Monday. She had been placed on leave April 15. Felony charges of engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity, conspiracy, money laundering and conducting illegal bingo, all felonies, and misdemeanor charges of illegally operating as a distributor of bingo supplies against Edmison were dismissed Aug. 27 in open court by the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor's Office. The 2025-26 Vermilion school year started Aug. 21. A social studies teacher, Edmison missed only about a week of the school year before she was reinstated, Hile said. There still was some criminal liability for Edmison's business, K Zip Services and Repairs, which shares her home address and as an organization was charged with some of the same crimes as Edmison. As its sole owner, Edmison pleaded guilty on behalf of the business to three counts of illegally operating as a distributor of bingo supplies. Judge John O'Donnell accepted the plea, found K Zip guilty of the charges. He ordered K Zip to forfeit $200,000 in a Mellon bank account to the Ohio Investigative Unit, the state agency that enforces alcohol, tobacco, food stamp fraud and gambling laws. Charges of engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity, conspiracy, money laundering, conducting illegal bingo games were dismissed by prosecutors, according to court records. Attorney Kevin Spellacy, who represented both Edmison and her business in court, said his client got into the charity bingo business through her family, but her first passion is teaching. "She's an excellent teacher, an excellent coach," he said, but sometimes teacher have to have side jobs and Edmison's was a side job in what Spellacy said was "a pseudo-family business." The charity bingo work Edmison did helped raise money for youth baseball and hockey, he said. But her first love remained teaching and coaching, and Spellacy said his goal in reaching a resolution with prosecutors was to get his client back to that. He said he also wanted to exonerate her company, but it took a financial hit so Edmison can continue teaching and coaching, Spellacy said. Spellacy said he had "a book of letters and statements" from people who love and support Edmison and whose lives she touched. "She's a really good human being," he said. "I look forward to seeing how she progresses." Lexi Bauer, a spokesperson for the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor's Office, said related cases still are pending in court and declined further comment. Hile said Edmison's suspension from teaching and coaching was simply because of the felony indictment. The district couldn't have her in the classroom while she was under scrutiny of the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor's Office, he said. There will be no internal investigation by Vermilion schools because the criminal charges "had nothing to do with anything that happened at school," Hile said. "We would have no cause to investigate anything," he said. "We have an obligation to restore her to her employment." Edmison, her business and five other defendants — two businesses and three people — were indicted in March by a Cuyahoga County grand jury on charges related to alleged illegal gambling dating back to 2018. Edmison pleaded not guilty to all charges and was released on bond. The indictment alleged that between August 2018 and November 2022, Kristina Edmison, Lee Edmison Jr., Lee Edmison III, K Zip Services and Repairs, Modern Music & Games and LJ Modern Properties LLC controlled illegal gambling and instant bingo machines at 13 bars in Cuyahoga County. A felony conviction would have resulted in Edmison losing her teaching license. Her criminal record consists only of a 2008 DUI conviction in Oberlin Municipal Court. Charges remain against Lee Edmison III, 54, and LJ Modern Properties at the same address as his home address in North Royalton, and Lee Edmison Jr., 76, and Modern Music & Games, at the same address in Hinckley that is Lee Edmison Jr.'s home. Lee Edmison Jr. is Kristina Edmison's father and Lee Edmison III is her brother, according to Spellacy. Trials in the cases of both men are set to start Monday , according to Cuyahoga County court records. The defendants allegedly provided, maintained and serviced electronic gambling machines at multiple bars in the Cleveland area since 2018 and provided bingo supplies to charities including youth sports associations, but had the wrong state licenses to do so, according to their indictments. Authorities were looking to seize property, vehicles, cash, bank accounts and slot machines, according to the indictment. A misdemeanor gambling charge against another defendant in the case, 63-year-old Nicky Romito of Brooklyn Heights, was dismissed in March, according to court records. Contact Dave O'Brien at (440) 329-7129 or dobrien@chroniclet.com.