WASHOUGAL, Wash. (KOIN) — The Evergreen School District asked the Washington State Superintendent of Public Instruction to investigate whether a Mountain View High School teacher had an inappropriate relationship with a student.
Eric Smedsrud has been on administrative leave since December 2015. A letter to parents said Smedsrud is on leave for an on-going personnel investigation, but it didn’t say why. But KOIN 6 News has learned Smedsrud is having a relationship with a former student, and they are possibly living together.
Smedsrud was a band teacher at Mountain View, and the student was in his class. In Washington and Oregon, it is a crime for a teacher to have sex with a student under 18, but once the student becomes 18, a teacher/student relationship isn’t a crime, it is only a violation of the teaching code of conduct. And, once a student graduates, a relationship is allowed.
The young woman in this case, who graduated in June 2015, was 18 for most of her senior year. But the big question the state is trying to determine is when their relationship started.
A complaint letter from the Evergreen School District accused Smedsrud of:
- Initiating a sexual relationship with a former student and invading teacher-student boundaries while she was still an Evergreen student
- Violating directives to avoid contact with any witnesses and not to discuss the investigation with others
- Lying during the investigation
- Supplying alcohol during the fall of 2015 to a former underage student
The young woman recently posted a statement on Facebook aimed at people criticizing their relationship, claiming their relationship began after she graduated high school. She wrote:“Eric is a former teacher of mine. In October, I found myself needing someone and Eric found himself needing someone as well. From that point forward our relationship changed, and it is the best thing that has ever happened to me…Eric is 41, and I am 19. Many of you believe that he has taken advantage of me. Let me say how offended this makes me as a woman. No man will ever take advantage of me. End of story.”What their lawyers said
KOIN 6 News received a statement from Smedsrud’s lawyer that said, in part, “…There is no direct or reliable evidence that Mr. Smedsrud supplied alcohol to a minor.”
The lawyer added the Evergreen School District “at no time directed or instituted a blanket ‘No Contact’ order between Mr. Smedsrud and potential witnesses.” He also said Smedsrud “provided honest answers to all relevant questions.”
“Mr. Smedsrud has been the victim of a knowing, concerted and focused intrusion and invasion of his privacy,” his lawyer said. “The allegation relating to his initiating a sexual relationship with an adult is completely inappropriate and there is no legal authority for an inquiry of this nature.”
Smedsrud himself has not responded to a request for an interview from KOIN 6 News
The former student also has a lawyer who sent an email to KOIN 6 News.
Letter-From-Student-Lawyer-LTT-KOIN-05252016 (Text)
The former student, her lawyer said, “was victimized by the Evergreen School District. Her privacy has been repeatedly violated and she was subjected to threats by district employees and/or agents. She has retained this office to address those violations of her rights.”
Smedsrud’s ex-wife — the mother of their 2 children, ages 17 and 10 — filed for divorce in January 2016. The divorce was finalized last week..
The Evergreen School District has declined to speak with KOIN 6 News.