Charges against former MM coach Mosier dismissed
Charges against former MM coach Mosier dismissed - May of '08
By Stephanie Mathieu
Charges of sexual misconduct against former Mark Morris High School coach Sanford "Sandy" Mosier were dismissed Thursday afternoon, but Cowlitz Superior Court Judge Jim Stonier said he granted the dismissal "reluctantly."
"There is ample evidence that you violated a position of trust of the school district, of the athletes that you coached, of this young lady and of this community," Stonier told Mosier. "There is ample evidence that you should never be left alone with a teenage girl ever again."
Still, Stonier said he had to grant the defense attorney's motion to dismiss the case based on the narrowness of facts and an old law. Prosecutors and Stonier noted that the case may have been handled differently under laws adopted in 2005 to protect minors from sexual exploitation.
The state alleged Mosier had a sexual relationship with a student softball player who he coached that started in 2004, when she was 17.
Mosier declined to comment on the specifics of the case Friday. "I'm glad that it's all over and I'm looking forward to spending time with my wife and my three children," he said by phone.
Mosier, 44, was charged with 10 counts of sexual misconduct with a minor and pleaded not guilty last November.
Prosecutors alleged he violated the law two ways - first, by abusing his supervisory position by engaging in sexual intercourse with a minor between the ages of 16 and 18, and, second, that he was a school employee while having sexual intercourse with a minor.
Mosier's lawyer, Seattle-based Brad Meryhew, asked for a dismissal on grounds that Mosier did not the meet the definition of school employee under criminal law and that he did not use his supervisory position to coax the girl into sex with threats or promises.
Prosecutors argued Mosier still was an employee of the school at the time and therefore was still in a position of power over the girl. Even after the softball season, prosecutors pointed out, Mosier still had keys to school facilities, was called "coach" by students and attended a football coaching workshop.
Stonier said he had to agree with the defense because, according to Mosier's contract with the Longview School District, he was considered an employee only during the seasons he coached. Also, there was no evidence he coerced or used his position of authority to get the girl to have sex.
"(The student) said she believed there was a genuine attraction present between Mosier and her and that her softball playing was not affected by it at all," according to the defense motion.
The 2004 softball season ended around Nov. 16, according to court documents, and the student said she and Mosier first had sexual intercourse that Nov. 22. The girl was 17, and the sexual relationship continued through her 18th birthday, according to court documents.
According to court documents, the girl told police she and Mosier had sex at her home, his home, other people's homes, the school and the public park. She also was a babysitter for Mosier's children, according to court documents.
Mosier was a varsity girls' softball head coach in 2004 and was assistant softball coach in 2001 and 2003, according to court documents. He continued as assistant football coach at the school through 2007.
In 2005, the Legislature broadened the law so adults in a supervisory position can't exploit a significant relationship to obtain sex, eliminating the need to provide threats or promises were made. The law came too late in Mosier's case, Stonier said.
"The court has no choice but to grant the defense motion," he said.
