Employee of a residential treatment center in Washington County charged with sexual offenses against a juvenile patient

WASHINGTON, Washington County, Utah, September 14, 2024 (Gephardt Daily) – A 37-year-old employee of a residential treatment facility was arrested for alleged sexual offenses against a juvenile resident.

Sean Michael Stanley, of St. George, was arrested for alleged unlawful sexual contact with a minor, a third-degree felony, and misdemeanor counts of sexual abuse of a minor and providing a nicotine product to a minor who gave him a vaping device after each of the alleged sex acts.

The crimes described are statutory crimes based on age difference, meaning that the victim is a minor and too young to legally consent to sexual contact.

Washington City Police launched an investigation on February 16 after reports that the alleged 15-year-old victim had been sexually abused by a staff member at the facility.

The minor girl told police the first incident occurred after she angrily left the facility and Stanley picked her up in his vehicle, according to charging documents filed in 5th District Court.

They drove to a secluded part of the nearby neighborhood and engaged in sexual acts that did not amount to intercourse, according to Stanley's probable cause affidavit. He then drove the girl back to the facility, “encouraged her not to talk to anyone about it and raised the possibility that the two of them might have sex in the future.”

The second alleged offence occurred the next day, police said, after Stanley and the teenager went to the movies with another employee, who later complained of feeling unwell and was dropped off at home, leaving Stanley alone with the girl. He drove her to a similarly secluded location where, according to allegations, a similar sexual encounter occurred.

According to police, documents from the facility where Stanley works appear to corroborate the victim's statements. Stanley had previously been reprimanded for taking a resident on a ride alone in his vehicle “to avoid false accusations/creating an unsafe environment.”

When interviewing staff, police found that there was a general belief that Stanley was overly friendly towards staff and clients “and hung around the women's area even though he was assigned elsewhere”.

According to the affidavit, Stanley admitted to driving alone with the victim but denied that any sexual activity occurred.