SPOKANE, Wash. – Spokane Public Schools leaders said they have forwarded the case against a Ferris High School football coach to the Shoshone County Sheriff’s Office.
Ferris High School Football Coach Jim Sharkey has been on paid administrative leave since February.
School records obtained by KREM 2 News include written notes from Spokane Public Schools administrator Mary Templeton from her meetings with Sharkey, emails from concerned parents and students about Sharkey’s alleged behavior, an anonymous letter to Ferris administrators from a concerned parent of a football player and formal letters to Sharkey himself from Spokane Public Schools.
The documents claim Sharkey exposed himself to several players during a high school football camp at a ranch owned by Bobby Brett in Cataldo, Idaho. Documents say he did it as a joke and then lied about it when confronted by administrators. Documents also bring up allegations of physically abusive group hazing between members of Sharkey's football team.
The notes show Sharkey strongly denied both of the allegations in meetings with the district. He even called the exposure claim "the biggest lie" he had ever heard.
Officials said there are still witnesses being contacted as part of the investigation. On March 3, the Spokane Public Schools director of safety forwarded the allegations to the Shoshone County Sheriff's Office to determine whether or not there should be any criminal charges filed against Sharkey.
School district leaders could not say when the personnel issue with Sharkey would be resolved. They also said they would hand over any internal findings to police and will continue to cooperate with law enforcement. Sharkey has not been charged with anything at this time. Both the school district and Shoshone County Sheriff's Office are still investigating.
The Shoshone County Sheriff's Office confirmed it was an active investigation. In a release, they said they were "making all efforts to identify and locate these individuals [involved] for interviews."