Janitor At WSU Gym Was Sex Offender Campus Police Knew But Waited Before Telling University Officials

A sex offender arrested last week for not registering with Whitman County had been working for the past three months as a janitor in the women’s gym at Washington State University.

Suspecting Eddie Dean Arnold in a rash of thefts at Smith Gym, university police learned early this month he was a convicted rapist.

But university officials didn’t know about Arnold’s criminal past until authorities arrested him nearly a week later for failing to register.

During that time, WSU police were keeping Arnold under surveillance, said Capt. Mike Kenny.

“You can work these things in different ways,” he said. “He had already been working down there with no issues or problems related to the sex offense.”

Nevertheless, news of Arnold’s sex offender status unnerved women who use the gym.

“There are jobs for people like that,” said Danielle Walker, a university secretary and avid runner. “But a job at a women’s gym is completely inappropriate.”

“I’ve said it for years - it’s not safe in the women’s locker room,” said Vicki McCracken, an administrator who takes aerobic classes on campus.

The 36-year-old Arnold has convictions for possession of stolen property, forgery and burglary dating back to 1979, according to the state Department of Corrections.

His most recent conviction was notched in 1988 - for the second-degree statutory rape of a Chelan County girl in her early teens. After his release from prison in 1990, he registered in Yakima County but left the area in 1992 without leaving a change of address, said Whitman County Sheriff Steve Tomson.

Arnold’s parole conditions, which required he have no contact with young females, expired in 1993, said Maureen Ashley of the Corrections Department.

Arnold was hired by WSU this October, working a 5 p.m.-to-1:30 a.m. shift paying $18,500 a year, said Joe Spoonemore, physical plant director.

The janitor’s duties included cleaning floors and rest rooms but did not involve going into the women’s locker room, said Spoonemore, who described Arnold as dependable.

While the school can ask if an applicant has been convicted of a felony in the past seven years, Arnold’s unsavory past wouldn’t have been exposed because his convictions are old.

“It’s very hard for us to know that these people may have some background,” said Spoonemore.

“If we had known about him, Smith Gym would not have been a good choice,” he added.

Spoonemore said he first learned Arnold had a sex offense on his record after he was arrested last Thursday. He then ordered that Arnold be immediately placed on unpaid leave.

It is unclear if and when other school officials knew of Arnold’s record.

Sgt. Scott West of the university police said he first learned of it during a background check after Arnold reported the attempted theft of a television/VCR on Dec. 2.

“I don’t recall when I let physical plant know on that issue,” West said Wednesday. “It could have been a week later. It could have been just prior to his arrest.”

Meanwhile, police were leaving items around Smith Gym in hopes of catching Arnold stealing them, Kenny said.

Whitman County Sheriff’s Deputy Cameron Hershaw knew of Arnold’s status as an unregistered sex offender but held off on arresting him for fear of jeopardizing WSU’s theft investigation, said Sheriff Tomson.

While it is not a matter of written policy, he said, the department generally arrests unregistered sex offenders immediately.

“I don’t want a window of opportunity out there where some crime is going to occur,” Tomson said. “You can imagine the public reaction later.”

Tomson said he learned of Arnold’s record on Dec. 21 and had him arrested while at work that night. Going through his custodial cart, police found several pieces of evidence, said Kenny. They later executed a search warrant at his home west of Colfax and found a camcorder, a cassette deck and several balls believed stolen from the gym, Kenny said.

Arnold has since been released on $500 bond. Efforts to reach him Wednesday were unsuccessful.

Chief Deputy Prosecutor Ron Shirley had asked that his bond be set at $5,000, based in part on Arnold’s failure to register.

“Obviously he had some reason to hide his location,” Shirley said. “We don’t know what that reason is, whether or not he was involved in some kind of plan to commit other sex offenses or some other crime.

“We just don’t know. But he certainly is somebody who can’t be trusted.”

, DataTimes