PORT ANGELES — Douglas J. Allison, the principal and head teacher at Mountain View Christian School near Sequim, was arrested Tuesday for investigation of first-degree rape of a child and first-degree child molestation.
The Clallam County Sheriff’s Office said the alleged victims were two girls 10 and 11 years old, that they were Allison’s students and that the alleged crimes occurred during class.
Allison, 55, is being held in the Clallam County jail on $100,000 bail.
A hearing for formal charges is set for 1 p.m. Friday in Clallam County Superior Court at the county courthouse in Port Angeles.
Michele Devlin, Clallam County chief criminal deputy prosecuting attorney, requested a $250,000 bail at Allison’s initial court appearance Wednesday.
“Our argument is based entirely on community safety,” Devlin told Superior Court Judge Christopher Melly.
“Mr. Allison is a schoolteacher of minor children, and the allegations are that he molested and potentially raped children in front of his class while other children were watching.”
“He held a position of authority over these children,” Devlin added.
“He is a danger to any other child out there.”
Melly found probable cause to hold Allison for the alleged crimes. He signed orders preventing Allison from having any contact with minors.
“With regard to the issue of bail, I think that based upon my review of the police report, there is some jeopardy to children with regard to your release at this juncture, Mr. Allison,” Melly said.
“I am going to set bail. I’m going to set the amount at $100,000, however, as opposed to $250,000.”
Should Allison post bail, he would be required to wear a GPS device to track his movements.
Melly did not appoint a Clallam Public Defender based on Allison’s self-reported salary of about $48,000.
“I’m going to find that you have the resources to hire an attorney,” Melly said.
Allison, one of two teachers at the small private school, was arrested at about 9 p.m. Tuesday at his Anchor Cove Lane residence near Sequim.
According to the affidavit for probable cause, he told Clallam County Sheriff’s Detective Brian Knutson that he began touching the girls inappropriately last October or November.
“Douglas said he did this when [the girls] were at his desk while teaching other students,” the nine-page affidavit says. “Douglas said he did this for sexual gratification.”
The school at 225 Medsker Road north of Sequim operates under the direction of the Office of Education, North American Division of Seventh-day Adventist Church.
“In our point of view, the health and safety of our students is our primary concern, so we are, and have been, fully cooperating with the investigation undertaken by law enforcement,” said Matthew Gilkey, director of human resources for the Washington Conference of Seventh-day Adventists.
“As for ongoing classes, we [have arranged] for a respected and very trusted substitute teacher to take over teaching responsibility to assist with keeping the program going and giving the parents a sense of security.”
The western conference is in the process of providing professional counseling for the students at the school affected by the incident, he said.
School is not closed, he said.
“The police notified us of the investigation, and we immediately put Mr. Allison on administrative leave and put in a substitute teacher that all of the parents know and have dealt with before so that it was seamless,” Gilkey said.
“We will do everything we can to make this easier” on the students, he said.
Chief Criminal Deputy Brian King of the Clallam County Sheriff’s Office said Allison had been at the school for about three years and that he had held a similar position in California.
“Part of our investigation is going to be looking at certainly going back and working with other authorities and trying to identify the extent of this investigation,” King said.
“I spent time today talking with the superintendent of the [California] Seventh-day Adventist Church schools and having discussions with him, and it has been a real cooperative process.
“They are completely cooperating with us,” King added.
The alleged crimes were reported to authorities March 23.
Deputies Ralph Edgington and Stacy Sampson, a certified child forensic interviewer, met with a 10-year-old and her mother at Healthy Families of Clallam County on March 24, according to the arrest narrative.
During the ensuing investigation, a second girl disclosed that she had been sexually assaulted, King said.
Investigators conducted follow-up interviews with the two girls, other students and parents.
One parent agreed to phone Allison with detectives listening in Tuesday. Allison disclosed in that conversation that he had touched the girl inappropriately and that his “life had come to an end,” court papers said.
After his arrest, Allison told investigators he was “ashamed of what he had done.”
Allison has no criminal history in Washington state, Devlin said.
“I am really proud of the detectives for moving as quickly as they did because these are really sensitive investigations,” King said in a Wednesday telephone interview.
“The interviews are conducted by our forensic child interviewers that are specially trained in these type of [incidents] dealing with children under the age of 12.”
King said the investigation was “by no means close to over.”
“In many ways, it is just beginning,” he said.
Anyone with information about the case is asked to phone Clallam County Sheriff’s Office dispatch at 360-417-2459.
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Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 56450, or at rollikainen@peninsuladailynews.com.
Reporter Chris McDaniel can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 56650, or at cmcdaniel@peninsuladailynews.com.