Washington teacher accused of child molestation avoids prison by agreeing to plea deal

A former Washington teacher who was accused of child molestation, was able to avoid prison by agreeing to a plea deal. The light sentence was after the school district settled with the victim for $3.2 million after being accused of trying to conceal the alleged molestation.

On Friday, former Olympia School District teacher Jonathan J. Moore, 35, pleaded guilty to third-degree assault in Thurston County Superior Court, per the News Tribune. Moore was charged with third-degree child molestation, second-degree sexual misconduct with a minor, and communication with a minor for immoral purposes.

A former student, who is now 19, told police Moore groomed him while he attended Jefferson Middle School and molested him while he attended Capital High School.

Moore entered an Alford plea, meaning he maintained his innocence but pleaded guilty to a lower charge to avoid a harsher conviction. In a written statement to the court, he said there was a “substantial likelihood” that he would have been convicted if the case had gone to trial with the original charges. The Prosecuting Attorney’s Office recommended that Moore get a first-time offender waiver and credit for time served to avoid prison. Moore got credit for one day of time served in the county jail when he was first arrested.

Judge Mary Sue Wilson followed the prosecutor’s recommendation, ordered Moore not to have any contact with the victim for five years, complete a psychosexual evaluation, and follow through with any recommended treatment. He was also sentenced to 12 months of community custody, prohibited from having contact with minors except with authorized approval, and must provide a DNA sample as well as pay mandatory fines.

Moore was arrested in February 2023, following a six-month investigation into the student’s accusations. The victim told police that he met Moore at Jefferson Middle School where Moore taught a digital media class. When the student graduated, Moore followed the student to Capital High School.

According to OSD Rescue, the student described grades 6-8 as a “grooming phase” where Moore assumed a “parental” role. The identified as SV, became depressed, distant from friends, gained weight, and became more reliant on Moore by 8th grade. He was even completing SV’s homework assignments. Moore communicated with SV through Skype, email, and other chat apps when not spending time together at school, which were sexual in nature. Moore called him every night around 11:30 pm where they would talk until 1 am.

Moore created a fantasy life in which he described them having children together via a surrogate, the student said. According to SV, Moore also insisted the student call him “boyfriend,” and made plans to live together once SV was an adult, with the first sexual advancements toward SV taking place in a classroom at Jefferson Middle School.

Moore transferred to Capital High School as a visual communication/design teacher and debate/honor society advisor when SV went to high school and the student alleged that Moore would initiate frequent sexual encounters in the school newsroom where he ran a student TV station.

Olympia Police received a call on August 11, 2022 reporting Moore for sexual misconduct with a Capital student. The department immediately informed Capital High School of the allegations against the teacher. The school told officers that Moor had been placed on leave for “professional misconduct allegations with students” two months before in June 2022.

The school district disclosed that they carried out an “internal” investigation into several accusations against Moore. The internal report outlined allegations such as using profane language and making threats towards students, referring to minors with sexual terms such as “top” and “bottom,” throwing object, staying late at school with students, and discussing the investigation with students in an attempt to gain their support. Additionally, Moore was found alone with a student in the media room by two Capital administrators during a school dance.

However, the district refused to provide the documents to law enforcement, prompting the police department to obtain a search warrant to access them. Additionally, the school had removed a camera system and locked the hard drives, which were located in the principal’s office, possibly containing footage that could have shed light on the situation. The school stated that they did not believe the cameras were functioning, but since law enforcement was unable to retrieve them, their relevance to the investigation remains uncertain.

Moore was arrested in February 2023, and a notification was sent to current Capital High School families the following day. Moore had been fired in Sept. 2022 for matters that were separate from the situation that led to his arrest, according to the Olympian.

The Olympia School District delayed until May 2023 to send a letter to the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction about the incident, nearly a year after Moore was found in violation of district policies and two months following his arrest. The letter cited Moore’s “unprofessional conduct” but didn’t inform the office of Moore’s arrest, or the charges against him.

The Olympia School District settled with the victim for $3.2 million in response to a lawsuit alleging that the district was aware of grooming and sexual abuse and failed to act.