A 26-year-old Hockinson High School athletic trainer told investigators he initiated a dating relationship with a 16-year-old female student, including four visits to his apartment, according to records filed in Clark County Superior Court.
The Clark County Sheriff’s Office said Jason Meharry, 26, was booked on suspicion of three counts of first-degree sexual misconduct with a minor on Thursday.
“Meharry told me he was attracted to” the student during their time together, “and later felt bad for initiating the relationship,” Deputy Jason Granneman wrote in a probable cause affidavit included in court documents.
The deputy interviewed Meharry on March 23 and determined Meharry works at ProActive Physical Therapy Specialists in Vancouver and is under contract as a sports trainer for the high school. In his role at the school, Meharry treats student athletes in need of physical therapy, often taping up sore joints, according to the affidavit.
Meharry has an office inside the high school. He “acts in a supervisory role and adviser at Hockinson High School when overseeing students requiring his medical attention,” the affidavit says.
Meharry said he started the relationship in December, according to the affidavit; the student came to his apartment four times, during which the two had sexual contact. He texted the teenager, which is how he gave her directions to his apartment, court records state.
The girl told deputies she went on at least two dates with Meharry, and they took “selfies” together. She said she kissed and hugged the 26-year-old because she was attracted to him, and she wore clothes when the physical contact escalated at Meharry’s apartment.
But Meharry admitted he had sex with the girl twice in a follow-up interview on Monday, according to the affidavit. Those encounters allegedly happened at Meharry’s apartment and the girl’s home.
Washington state law says a person is guilty of first-degree sexual misconduct if they have sex with a 16-year-old victim who is at least five years younger, if the person abuses a supervisory position they have over a victim younger than 18, or if the person is a school employee and has sex with an underage student, among other criteria.
Meharry made an initial court appearance Friday morning in Clark County Superior Court. He said little at the hearing beyond requesting a court-appointed defense attorney and confirming that he was aware of the allegations against him.
Deputy Prosecutor Katie Sinclair asked for $20,000 bail, arguing Meharry took advantage of a student under his care. Sinclair noted Meharry lacked a criminal record.
Superior Court Judge Derek Vanderwood set bail at $10,000.
The judge also noted a sexual assault protective order filed against Meharry, which bars the personal trainer from contacting his alleged victim or even coming within 1,000 feet of her.
Meharry told the judge he understood the order’s conditions. He will be arraigned April 6.
Administrators in the district heard about the possibility of inappropriate conduct between Meharry and a student March 23 and immediately placed Meharry on leave and notified his employer, according to a letter sent home to families Thursday. The district also contacted the sheriff’s office.
“Due to the ongoing investigation by the Clark County Sheriff’s Office, Hockinson School District cannot provide any information other than that the student is enrolled as a high school student in our district,” the letter said.
