Former Freeland massage therapist pleads guilty to indecent liberties charges

A former Freeland massage therapist has pleaded guilty in Island County Superior Court to two counts of indecent liberties as a health care provider, closing one major phase of a case built on patient complaints, licensing violations and the failure of professional safeguards meant to protect people in a vulnerable setting.

Christopher W. Blunt was taken into custody after his May 1 hearing after admitting sexual contact with two patients in 2023. Under the plea bargain, both sides will recommend 60 days in jail. The agreement also calls for a psychosexual evaluation, compliance with any recommended treatment and any registration obligations required under law. Judge Christon Skinner ordered a pre-sentence investigation by the Department of Corrections, which is required before sentencing in sex offense cases.

The allegations reached beyond one encounter. The case began after a woman reported that Blunt touched her breast without permission during a massage session in December 2023. She later said he kissed her on the forehead and thanked her for sharing her body with him. Investigators noted that she felt frozen and afraid to resist because she was alone with him, and the report also described a sharp power imbalance: she was very petite, while Blunt is 6-foot-8. A second complaint came from an inspector with the state Department of Health, who referred another woman’s report that Blunt rubbed her between the legs without warning or explanation. In an interview with deputies, Blunt denied wrongdoing and said he always had permission for the areas he worked on, including breasts and groin areas.

The case is also a test of Washington’s licensing rules for bodywork. State law says indecent liberties includes sexual contact during a treatment session when the perpetrator is a health care provider and the victim is a client or patient. Washington rules require prior signed or initialed written and verbal informed consent before breast massage, and therapists must have specialized in-person training. If a breast massage includes the nipples and areolae, the therapist must have either a medical referral or separate informed consent, along with evidence of at least 16 hours of breast-massage education and training. The rules also bar massage therapists from having sexual relationships with former patients within two years after the provider-patient relationship ends.

For clients in Freeland and South Whidbey, the licensing consequences are already in place. The Washington Department of Health suspended Blunt’s massage credential on June 27, 2024, saying the charges alleged explicit sexual misconduct involving at least three patients and that the action was meant to protect patient safety and public health. Island County Superior Court records are public through the county’s court-records system and the courthouse law-and-justice facility, and the guilty plea now leaves sentencing, treatment requirements and possible registration obligations as the next steps in a case that exposed serious failures in patient protection.