By Natalie Johnson
The Chronicle
The Washington State Supreme Court on Thursday upheld 2012 convictions of rape and sexual misconduct against former Pe Ell coach Todd Phelps, reversing a lower appeals court’s 2017 ruling.
The Supreme Court also reversed a ruling regarding the prosecutor in the case, Will Halstead, saying that he did not commit “flagrant” misconduct, as the Court of Appeals also ruled last year.
“We are happy with the Supreme Court’s decision, mainly because the victim can have closure and continue with her life,” said Lewis County Prosecutor Jonathan Meyer. “While we stood ready to try the case again, we’re glad we don’t have to.”
Meyer noted Phelps has already served his sentence in the case. He said the defendant has likely exhausted his options on appeals.
Phelps, a former Pe Ell fastpitch coach, was convicted of third-degree rape and sexual misconduct, including aggravating factors of abuse of trust and abuse of a vulnerable victim after a 2012 jury trial in Lewis County Superior Court and was sentenced to six years in prison.
The victim, a 16-year-old girl, was a player on the team Phelps coached. They had a close relationship, according to court documents, and Phelps encouraged her to confide in him about personal problems, including depression.
Then the girl reportedly told an adult she had “inappropriate sexual contact” with Phelps, according to court documents.
Phelps denied any improper behavior in 2011, and was allowed by the Pe Ell School District to continue coaching on the condition that he spent no time alone with students or exchange text messages with them.
However, Phelps reportedly continued to contact the girl, including writing in one instance that “he had never loved anyone as much as he loved her,” according to court documents.
Phelps later resigned from coaching. The girl accused Phelps of forcing her to have sex with him that summer, and Phelps was charged in Lewis County Superior Court.
Phelps filed an appeal, and last January the state Court of Appeals ruled with his argument that Halstead told the jury that Phelps sexually “groomed,” or conditioned the victim prior to the sexual assault for which he was convicted, while expert testimony on the concept of grooming was not introduced in the trial, according to the Supreme Court’s ruling.
The Court of Appeals ruled that this was “flagrant” misconduct from the prosecutor and overturned Phelps’ conviction.
However, the Supreme Court reversed that ruling in its decision released Thursday.
“The prosecutor also did not commit flagrant and ill-intentioned misconduct, nor has Phelps shown that if misconduct occurred it caused him actual and substantial prejudice,” the opinion reads.
Meyer said his office was always on Halstead’s side.
“We never believed he committed any type of misconduct,” Meyer said.
