SBI investigating Johnston County husband-wife pair for inappropriate relationships with students

The North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation said Thursday that it was investigating a husband and wife pair for having inappropriate relationships with students.

Posted 8:58 p.m. May 26, 2022 — Updated 2:30 a.m. May 27, 2022

WENDELL, N.C. — The North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation said Thursday that it was investigating a husband and wife pair for having inappropriate relationships with Johnston County students.

Johnston County Sheriff's Office deputy and school resource officer Mike Medlin was terminated by the sheriff's office following the state's investigation.

His wife, Ami Medlin, has been teaching for 22 years and works as a family and consumer science teacher at Corinth Holders High School.

Johnston County Public School leaders said that Ami Medlin was suspended last Monday and has been working at Corinth Holders High School since 2015.

According to allegations made against Mike Medlin in the sheriff's office's resignation letter, the couple took a student home with them and invited the student into their bedroom to "watch movies" with them.

Mike Medlin admitted to being "involved" after the student was intoxicated, according to the sheriff's office termination letter. That same student also accused the Medlins of reaching out to them on social media.

The letter said that other children had inappropriate relationships with the couple. It includes a female student who had been a babysitter for their children.

It's unclear if Mike Medlin also worked in Corinth Holders High School.

Mike Medlin is accused of lying during an internal investigation, which is part of the reason why he was terminated.

According to a records search, no charges have been filed against the Medlins.

A statement from Johnston County Public Schools states the district, "take[s] any allegations of staff misconduct seriously. Although we cannot discuss the specifics of an investigation into alleged staff misconduct, we can confirm that whenever such allegations arise, our administration responds swiftly, by investigating the allegations and, sometimes, by removing staff from classrooms pending completion of a thorough review. Beyond that, the school system is not at liberty to provide additional information."

Cristin DeRonja, leads SAFEChild, a child abuse prevention agency. DeRonja said it's important to set boundaries between children and the alone time they spend with a trusted adult.

"Your soccer coach — you should only be interacting with that soccer coach at soccer practice and soccer games with other children and adults around. You should not be going to dinner with your soccer coach," said DeRonja.

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