This story was originally posted on MyNorthwest.com
A 62-year-old gym teacher and coach at Skykomish K-12 School was arrested Friday on suspicion of sexually assaulting a student for two years, allegedly beginning when the girl was in seventh grade, according to King County Sheriff’s Office (KCSO) investigators and court documents.
The allegations are raising questions about how concerns were handled at the small mountain school, which has about 52 students and nine teachers.
According to court documents, multiple staff members, including a secretary and a counselor, as well as students, expressed concerns to school leadership about the relationship between the suspect and the victim.
Investigators say school instructed teacher not to be alone with student
Investigators said the school’s response was to instruct the teacher that he could not be alone with the student. Instead of assigning an adult to monitor them, the school allegedly required another student to be present whenever the two were in the same room.
Deputies said that the student was autistic and would often sit at the far end of the gym using a tablet and wearing headphones.
“The principal at the school told ***** that he couldn’t be alone with her, which was enforced by having another child with them while they were together,” a KCSO deputy said in court documents. “The child was autistic and would sit in the far end of the gym with his tablet and headphones while she and ***** would engage in sex acts in the stairwell on the opposite side of the gym.”
According to court documents, the stairwell has a window that the suspect would look through. A janitor nearly discovered the pair during one encounter, investigators said. Other encounters, according to court documents, took place in other areas of the school, in the Skykomish Community Center and Startup Event Center.
The allegations came to light after the victim’s mother reported it to authorities, according to deputies. Court documents said she discovered messages and images on her daughter’s phone and contacted investigators.
Because the suspect has not yet been formally charged, KIRO Newsradio is not naming him.
Victim had confided in teacher after experiencing trauma at another school
Investigators said the victim had transferred to the school after experiencing the traumatic death of a friend and fellow classmate at another school and initially confided in the teacher about her experiences. Investigators said the teacher would give the victim small gifts like a soccer scarf and a sports magazine. Later, the suspect gave his victim alcohol three to four times a week, including Mike’s Hard Lemonade and small bottles of Fireball, according to investigators.
Deputies said the suspect emailed the victim using his school district email account and that the suspect and victim seemed to have communicated in code, but “it was obvious they were referring to sexual acts together, and making plans on conducting said acts.” Deputies said in the documents that they were able to capture photos of those emails.
Deputies also said the suspect sprayed deodorant on a teddy bear belonging to the student so it would smell like him. Other “gifts” that were given to the victim by the suspect were collected by deputies, according to court documents. Deputies said those include pink lingerie, miniskirts, other suggestive clothing, a sex toy, and KY jelly lubrication.
Sheriff’s deputies arrested the suspect on Friday during school hours. The Skykomish School District notified parents in a letter and on social media after the arrest.
Court documents do not indicate staff initiated internal investigation after concerns raised
Superintendent Destry Jones said the district had no advance notice that the employee was under investigation.
“On Friday, King County investigators arrived to arrest a male staff member during the school day,” Jones wrote. “The district had no advance notice that the employee was under investigation until the day of his arrest.”
Jones added that the district would try to remain transparent as more information becomes available while also protecting the privacy of the student involved.
“Our focus remains on maintaining a safe and supportive learning environment for all students,” he wrote.
Court documents do not indicate that the principal or other staff members initiated an internal investigation after concerns were raised, and investigators did not describe any steps taken to permanently separate the teacher and the student.
So far, KIRO Newsradio’s questions sent to Jones and the school district have gone unanswered.
King County prosecutors asked a judge Saturday to set bail at $750,000 while detectives continue gathering evidence.
“What King County prosecutors did was go to court and argue that the suspect be held on $750,000 bail,” said Casey McNerthney, a spokesperson for the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. “The judge, after hearing from both sides, set bail at that amount.”
School handbook outlines staff responsibility to report suspected abuse to CPS
McNerthney said investigators are expected to provide additional information to prosecutors in the coming days, and a charging decision could come as soon as Wednesday.
Under Washington law, school staff are mandated reporters and are legally required to report suspected child abuse or neglect to Child Protective Services. Failure to report suspected abuse can carry criminal liability.
It is still unclear what, specifically, the staff and students who expressed concern, according to deputies, knew about the exact nature of the relationship between the suspect and victim.
The Skykomish School District’s 2019-2020 Staff Handbook includes a section on “Child Abuse/Neglect Prevention,” which states:
“Because child abuse and neglect are both a violation of children’s human rights and an obstacle to their educational development, staff should be attentive to any evidence for abuse or neglect. Any conditions or information that create a reasonable suspicion of abuse or neglect should be reported. Legal authorities have the responsibility for investigating each case and taking such action as is appropriate under the circumstances. Any school personnel having reasonable cause to suspect neglect or abuse shall make a verbal report to the Superintendent; however, the staff member who has the suspicion or to whom the abuse is reported has the responsibility to make the report to CPS.”
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