A former substitute teacher has been found guilty of engaging in a sexual relationship with a Washington-Liberty High School student.
Timothy Thomas McGhee was found guilty of taking indecent liberties with a minor after a three-day trial, the Arlington County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office announced in a press release. The verdict followed a previous trial in December, where a mistrial was declared due to a hung jury.
“This case involved the exploitation of a position of trust and authority,” said Commonwealth’s Attorney Parisa Dehghani-Tafti. “Students and families must be able to trust that educators and other adults charged with supervising young people will act in their best interests. When that trust is violated, our office is committed to pursuing accountability.”
McGhee was accused of engaging in a two-year relationship with a student who he met while employed as a long-term substitute teacher. She was 16 years old at the time, and the two engaged in “frequent contact both during and outside of school” as he continued to meet her as a private math tutor, prosecutors said.
Court documents alleged that McGhee initially exposed himself to the minor in his car while in a parking lot on N. Glebe Road. Multiple sexual encounters followed, both in his vehicle and at the minor’s Arlington residence.
When the teen was 17, prosecutors said in court filings, she accompanied McGhee on a trip to Chicago where the two allegedly engaged in sexual activity.
“She had told her mother that someone in Mr. McGhee’s family had died and that Mr. McGhee wanted company for the long drive to Chicago for the funeral,” court documents say.
The victim ended the relationship in December 2024, shortly after she turned 18. McGhee was arrested the following month, according to court records.
McGhee is scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 30 in Arlington County Circuit Court.
“We are grateful to the survivor for her courage in coming forward and participating in a lengthy legal process, and grateful to the jury, as always, for their service,” Dehghani-Tafti said.
