COLUMBUS, OHIO – Eight girls were among the 20 students strip-searched by teachers and administrators of a vocational high school because classmates reported losing $60 in cash, a credit card and two gift certificates worth a total of $50, eight girls claim in Federal Court. The girls have sued the Pike County Area Joint Vocational School District and four teachers and administrators, claiming they were removed from class at the Vern Riffe Career Technology Center on Jan. 20 and stripped, in a three-hour ordeal that did not turn up any of the allegedly missing items. The girls claim the strip searches violated the U.S. Constitution and state laws. They also sue Stephen Martin, Toni Fout, Keith Smith, Cheryl Shaw, teachers and administrators who allegedly participated in the strip searches. Each girl seeks $1.8 million in damages. They are represented by Jeffrey Gamso with the ACLU’s Cleveland office. One credit card turned up in the car of the student who reported it stolen. The other items were not recovered.