Community Education

Sheriff’s Office finds no crime in incident that led to suspension of three Peninsula High staff members

The Pierce County Sheriff’s office has determined that no crime was committed in a case involving three Peninsula High School staff members, according to a Sheriff’s office spokeswoman.

Peninsula School District on Sept. 28 informed families and staff that it placed three PHS employees on administrative leave pending an investigation of unspecified allegations. The district declined to identify the staff members.

Chief of Schools Michael Farmer said late Friday, Oct. 9, that they remain on administrative leave and the district’s investigation is ongoing.

On Friday, Oct. 9, PCSO spokeswoman Deputy Carly Cappetto emailed the following response to a request for information on Sheriff’s Office’s involvement.

“This was an unfounded case and is closed on our end. Moving forward, we will not be providing any further statements since it’s unfounded and no crime was found,” Capputto wrote. “We were investigating third-party allegations of inappropriate communications involving an 18- and 19-year-old student. After an extensive investigation, it was determined no crime was committed and we have closed our case. As for staff being placed on administrative leave, the school makes those decisions under its standard policies and procedures.”

The district’s Sept. 28 letter to families — titled “Important update about PHS” and signed by “PHS Leadership” — stated: “This message is to inform you that three staff members have been placed on administrative leave pending an investigation, in accordance with the district’s standard protocols. We are unable to share further details at this time, and we cannot provide a specific timeline for completion of the investigation.”

In an email on Friday, Farmer wrote that “we cannot provide an estimate” on when the district will complete its investigation.