Walt Whitman Coach Has Not Yet Taken Plea Deal In Sexual Abuse Case

BETHESDA, MD — Former rowing coach Kirk Shipley, who was charged with sexually abusing two former athletes, has yet to accept a plea deal offered to him, The Washington Post reported.

Prosecutors told a D.C. judge about the delay on Thursday, the Post reported.

The deal offered would require Shipley to plead guilty to first-degree sexual abuse of a secondary education student and possession of a sexual performance by a minor, The Washington Post said. In exchange, the remainder of sexual abuse charges against Shipley would be dropped.

Shipley would have to be registered as a sex offender for life, WTOP reported.

Shipley, who was a social studies teacher at Walt Whitman High School, was arrested in August 2021. A letter from the school's principal said he was placed on leave in August.

"These charges are deeply troubling and are a violation of the core values of our school and school system," Principal Robert Dodd wrote in the letter. "We hold our employees to a high standard of character and this behavior is completely unacceptable."