WA high school teacher charged with sex crimes involving young children

A 32-year-old teacher at Archbishop Murphy High School (AMHS) in Everett was recently charged with two counts of sex crimes involving young children.

According to King County court records, prosecutors filed charges against the suspect, John Doty, including dealing in depictions of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct and possession of similar content between January 16, 2024 and July 16, 2024. King County Jail records show the suspect is being held on $250,000 bail, and is awaiting trial.

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According to King County court records obtained by MyNorthwest, some of the victims may have been as young as infants. A detective uncovered downloaded files on Doty’s computer that contained child pornography. Many of the victims in the files ranged from ages 4 to 7, with one file containing a victim the detective believed to be a 1-year-old.

“He said that he doesn’t find the content with kids sexually arousing and doesn’t have a sexual interest in kids, but he finds it exciting to know that he is doing something illegal,” the documents read.

Searches on social media revealed the suspect listed his occupation as a teacher. On Facebook, he said he lives in King County. On LinkedIn, he said he’s been a teacher at AMHS for one year and seven months.

However, while a web search for the suspect revealed he was a teacher at AMHS, he did not appear on the school’s faculty website page. According to multiple sources, the suspect “disappeared” from the school last week, and students and staff did not know where he was.

Court records showed details of the images and depictions obtained by investigators are disturbing. Prosecutors described many images as depicting children and sexual intercourse, masturbation, penetration, urination, defecation and sadomasochistic abuse.

“The defendant has no known criminal history, but is a high school teacher who has now admitted to law enforcement he knowing collected this material and enjoyed the thrill of knowing he committed a crime each time,” the court documents read. “Further, he is charged with peddling in the misery of sexually abused children to satiate deviant interests and therefore has evidenced the threat he poses to community safety, most specifically minor children. This bail request provides some measure of accountability and endeavors to ensure the defendant’s appearance at future hearings to address the charges.”

KIRO Newsradio has contacted AMHS and the Archdiocese of Seattle. The AMHS administration released a statement early Wednesday regarding the situation:

The King County Sheriff’s Department notified us on Thursday that Mr. John Doty was arrested. He was immediately placed on administrative leave and then subsequently terminated. On Monday we informed his students and their parents that he was no longer employed at the school. 

Based on the information we have been provided by law enforcement, the arrest is for misconduct unrelated to his employment at Archbishop Murphy. All AMHS employees are screened using a background check and complete Safe Environment training throughout their employment. 

If you have any concerns about your student or their interactions with Mr. Doty, please let us know by contacting any administrator. Our counselors are also available to meet with students who may be impacted by this news.

The safety of our students and children within the broader community is our top priority.

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Doty’s employment ended less than 24 hours after charges were filed in Seattle on Monday. According to the charging documents filed with King County, no Archbishop Murphy students were involved in the alleged crimes.

This is a developing story, check back for updates.

Contributing: Frank Sumrall, MyNorthwest

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