By Diana Hefley and Bill Sheets,
The Daily Herald
The principal of a private Arlington school has been fired after being accused of child rape involving a student at the school.
Mark Evan Brown, 37, was placed on administrative leave from Highland Christian School after he was charged with third-degree child rape. School board members announced on Friday they were firing Brown after they learned more about the situation, according to a letter posted on the school's Web site.
The decision was made Thursday, said Linda Wallitner, the school's office manager.
"In the contract that Mark had with our office, he broke some of the rules, so they were able to let him go," Wallitner said. "It's not that we're saying he's innocent or guilty."
Brown is accused of encouraging a 14-year-old student to run away from home and offering her a place to stay at the school. The girl told detectives Brown had sexual contact with her at the school in a room he set up with a hide-a-bed and a television, according to court documents.
Detectives say Brown and the girl exchanged nearly 700 text messages and phone calls.
Brown pleaded not guilty to the rape charge Wednesday during a Snohomish County Superior Court hearing. He later was released from jail after posting $100,000 bond. School board secretary Kristin Sande released a statement after the hearing saying the board and the staff were standing behind Brown and planned to "continue to support him and his wife and his son through this ordeal he is going through."
In a letter released Friday, school board officials said they are cooperating with detectives and prosecutors. They also are conducting their own investigation, according to the letter.
"We are dedicated to continuing our investigation and discovering the full extent of this situation," the letter said. "As our inquiry progresses, the board will respond appropriately in a manner sensitive to the safety of our students and our employees."
School officials are obtaining a counselor to help students and families.
Brown has been principal at the school for three years. Before coming to the school, he was a wrestling coach at Concrete High School in Skagit County.
He was released from his coaching contract in 2004 after allegations surfaced that Brown had sexual contact with several female students at Concrete High School. The school district reported the allegations to officials at the state Department of Social and Health Services, who forwarded the complaint to the Skagit County Sheriff's Office. Sheriff's deputies opened an investigation. No charges were filed.
Snohomish County sheriff's detectives are revisiting those allegations as part of their investigation. They also have spoken to Brown's ex-wife, Casey West. She said she and Brown began dating in 1996 when she was 14 and he was 26.
The couple married in 2002. West filed for divorce in 2004. She said one reason for the split was her discovery of inappropriate text messages to Brown from a cheerleader at Concrete High School.
Highland is a state-approved private school and state law requires the school to do background investigations on employees. Information about a criminal investigation that doesn't result in a conviction, such as the case in Concrete, is not provided to school districts, according to Deborah Collinsworth with the Washington State Patrol. That sort of information is only shared with other police agencies.
Posted by Pebi Services President Tyra Hearns
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