North Kitsap School District Superintendent Laurynn Evans was charged with a misdemeanor crime on Wednesday, according to a statement from the Kitsap County Prosecutor's Office.
The charge, for removing or defacing political advertising, stems from an incident Jan. 26 when two residents reported that signs in opposition of North Kitsap School District's bond measure were taken, and identified Evans as a suspect. The bond failed in the Feb. 13 election, with approximately 63 percent of voters in the district opposing the $242 million measure.
Evans is scheduled to appear in court in a week, on Feb. 28, according to the prosecutor's office. The maximum penalty would be 90 days in jail or a $1,000 fine, plus restitution, assessment and court costs, according to the charging documents. The statement from the prosecutor's office notes that Evans has no prior criminal convictions or charges.
Evans, who denied taking the signs when interviewed by law enforcement on Jan. 26, is currently on paid administrative leave after a 4-1 North Kitsap school board vote in wake of the investigation over the sign incident.
"We understand that it is frustrating for our staff, families, and community that we cannot discuss details of personnel matters," a statement from North Kitsap School District read on Wednesday, after the charge was filed. "The board continues to be committed to a full and fair investigation, to making evidence-based decisions, and to keeping the best interests of our students as our guiding focus."
School board members contacted referred questions to North Kitsap school board chairman Mike Desmond, who was not immediately available. The North Kitsap School District board has a regular meeting scheduled for 5 p.m. Thursday.
Evans' charge comes nearly four weeks after she was initially contacted by deputies from the Kitsap County Sheriff's Office following a report made by Scott Henden and Kim Gerlach, members of a group that opposed North Kitsap's failing bond measure. Evans was later named the suspect in the theft.
Henden told KCSO deputies he witnessed the theft of two campaign signs he'd placed along Little Boston Road in Kingston. Henden and Gerlach identified a Ford Ranger used in the theft and later spotted the pickup truck in the parking lot outside the Sons of Norway building in Poulsbo. KCSO deputies confirmed the truck is owned by Evans, who was seen by Gerlach walking into the Sons of Norway building for a Poulsbo Rotary meeting.
When KCSO officers searched the back of Evans' truck, they found grease inside the tailgate that was consistent with grease that had been used as a theft deterrent on the signs, which were found discarded along Stottlemeyer Road. Officers also searched a dumpster near where Evans' truck was parked and spotted a pro-school bond sign, a washcloth and a pair of garden gloves. Those items were dirtied with small amounts of the grease that appeared consistent with the grease on the stolen signs.
"I told Evans I could see the grease marks in her truck and they were a match for the same grease that was on the signs that were taken and later recovered by me at a location she was observed stopping at," a KCSO sergeant wrote in the investigation report. "Evans looked shocked and I don't recall if she said anything. It was clear she was not telling the truth and I told her she should probably talk to the deputies, hinting that she should probably start telling the truth."
In an email Wednesday, Kitsap County Prosecutor Chad Enright acknowledged a high level of public interest in the case. State law limits the amount of public comment his office can make on pending charges, the email said, adding that the case "... will be handled in the same manner as thousands of other misdemeanor cases that our office, and the Kitsap County District Court, handle every year."