No charges for Bothell, WA teacher over student sexual misconduct allegations

BOTHELL, Wash. - Editor's note: A previous version of this story featured the suspect's name. However, since the alleged incident falls beyond the statute of limitations per a 2019 law, prosecutors did not file charges, and thus, we have removed the suspect's name from this story.

Prosecutors have opted not to file charges against a former Bothell High School teacher accused of an alleged sexual relationship with one of his students in 2015.

FOX 13 Seattle previously reported that the teacher was arrested after allegations of sexual misconduct with a student. On Monday, prosecutors declined to file charges.

Why didn't prosecutors file charges?

Dig deeper:

According to the King County Prosecuting Attorney's Office, the timeline of the incident — between 2015 and 2016 — falls beyond the statute of limitations, per a law that was adopted in 2019. Prosecutors say that crimes of first-degree sexual misconduct with a minor or immoral communications with a minor that occurred on or after July 28, 2019 can be pursued anytime thereafter.

But that law does not retroactively apply to criminal offenses before July 28, 2019.

This means that, since the crimes were alleged in 2015 and 2016, once the statute of limitations passed, they could no longer be prosecuted.

"Three separate senior deputy prosecuting attorneys reviewed this case and the available admissible evidence when it was referred today by police investigators, and each came to the same conclusion," reads a statement from the prosecutor's office. "This decision is based on the law and is not a judgement on the young woman involved here. We appreciate the work of Bothell Police and appreciate state lawmakers changing the statute of limitations for this criminal offense back in 2019."

Timeline:

According to court documents obtained by FOX 13 Seattle, the victim, who is now 26-years-old, disclosed the relationship to her therapist, who then reported a "statutory rape" to Bothell police.

Bothell police contacted the Northshore School District regarding the allegations, and the suspect was placed on administrative leave.

Detectives spoke with the victim, who explained she was 16–17 when the relationship reportedly occurred.

According to court docs, the Bothell High School teacher took a shine to the victim, who he invited into an "inner circle" of students. The two began having sexual conversations by March 2015, and by the fall of that year they had begun a sexual relationship.

The victim told detectives the sexual relationship ended when she graduated in 2016 and went to college outside the area.

The other side:

According to court docs, a few parents had taken notice of the victim and teacher's peculiar relationship, and one had written to the Bothell High School principal to disclose it. Detectives spoke with administrators who had worked there at the time, and none recalled an incident between the teacher and his students.

None of the former administrators seemed to remember the allegations, save for the former campus supervisor, who said she remembered there being a confidential meeting about the claims against the teacher, but she was not privy to their findings.

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