Ballard High School teacher's aide faces charge of child molestation

A Ballard High School teacher's aide and soccer coach faces charges with child molestation and two counts of sexual misconduct with a minor student, according to documents filed in King County Superior Court.

Seattle police detective Shannon Waldorf wrote in charging documents that Meghan Miller, a teacher's aide at Ballard High School, had sexually abused a female student for years, beginning when the student was 15 years old.

Miller told the student not to tell anyone what happened, the detective wrote. But in October 2018, the student told a friend about her experiences, who then reported it to the high school administration.

She was booked into custody late Friday afternoon and released on bond the following morning.

"The defendant cultivated a relationship with the child, earning not only her trust but the trust of the victim's family," prosecutor Emily Petersen wrote in the charging documents. "The defendant told the victim not to tell anyone about the abuse, thereby creating a situation where it could continue for a significant period of time."

Keven Wynkoop, principal at Ballard High School, sent a letter to parents on Friday, alerting families to the criminal charges.

"Recently, we received information that a student may have been the victim of a crime perpetrated by a school staff member," Wynkoop wrote. "We take an allegation of this nature very seriously and as soon as we learned the staff member’s identity, we immediately notified the Seattle Police Department, Human Resources and our Title IX Office."

Wynkoop said the school administration understood that the Seattle Police investigation of Miller was ongoing, and he urged people with information to contact the Seattle Police Department's sexual assault unit. The school will offer counseling staff for students after the winter break, Wynkoop added.

This story has been updated.