The arrest and second-degree sexual assault charge for a Sheridan High School assistant principal has many in this close-knit northern Wyoming town questioning how far the alleged abuse may have gone.
Jacob Meyer remains in the Sheridan County jail on a $20,000 bond as details of the charges against the educator emerge since he was arrested Monday on a warrant.
In a heavily redacted affidavit of probable cause outlining why Meyer, 33, was arrested obtained by The Sheridan Press, Meyer is accused of “sexual intrusion” on a female student “or participant in the activities of the school” who is about 15 years younger.
Meyer is alleged to have had a relationship with the victim via text message beginning in November, the newspaper reports the affidavit says.
At some point, the girl discovered Meyer used his cellphone to take photographs of inappropriate images of the girl, then asked her to send him more indecent images of herself, according to The Sheridan Press.
‘Very Sad’
Sheridan County School District 2 Board of Trustees members contacted by Cowboy State Daily said they couldn’t discuss Meyer’s arrest because it’s a personnel matter.
Trustee Shelta Rambur also said board members are funneling any official district comments and statements about the situation through Superintendent Scott Stults.
“Sheridan High School staff have let the students know that they are available to talk to them, because this alleged incident is a very serious, heavy topic,” said Rambur. “And we want to encourage any student that needs to talk to someone to come forward and talk.”
She said there’s also an advocacy resource center in Sheridan, which would be a great resource for parents and students.
Board Vice-Chair Arin Waddel called the situation “very sad,” but said she couldn’t say more.
Those Text Messages
Sheridan police became aware of the allegations against Meyer on May 4 when SHS Principal Scott Cleland notified them of the alleged sexual relationship between the assistant principal and the girl, according to the affidavit as reported by the Press.
Officer Meagan Phillips saw the text messages between the girl and Meyer, which included the older man inviting her to his home, plying her with beer and then having an alleged sexual encounter with her, according to the affidavit, the newspaper reports.
Greg Johnson can be reached at greg@cowboystatedaily.com and Clair McFarland can be reached at clair@cowboystatedaily.com.
