Former Riverside School Paraeducator Pleads Guilty to 12 separate Counts of Child Exploitation Involving Multiple Minor Victims

Spokane, Washington – United States Attorney Pete Serrano announced on October 15, 2025, that former Riverside School District employee Dallas Michael Shuler pled guilty to 12 felony counts pertaining to the online exploitation of children.

As indicated in court pleadings and hearings, in May of 2024, the FBI Spokane Office was contacted due to a child sexual abuse material video which had been posted online. When questioned about the video, Mr. Shuler indicated he had been in contact with the minors depicted in the video and had requested they produce the sexually explicit material. Further investigation into Mr. Shuler’s electronic devices and online accounts showed Mr. Shuler had engaged in hands-on sexual abuse of at least three minor children and had filmed the abuse. He also engaged in online sexual exploitation of children with dozens of additional victims, many of whom were contacted and victimized through Snapchat. The charges pled to encompass sexual exploitation against 37 different minor children.

United States Attorney S. Peter Serrano stated the following: “Abuse of any kind against a child is an egregious violation. My office is ready to aggressively prosecute those who exploit children in any way. Mr. Shuler’s conduct was a shocking breach of trust, particularly considering his position in an elementary school. I commend those who acted quickly in investigating and prosecuting this case. No child should experience what the children in this case unfortunately went through. I stand with our law enforcement partners in working to end the exploitation of children.”

“As a school district employee, Mr. Shuler was entrusted with the children of this community, whom he held a responsibility to safeguard and guide as a role model," said W. Mike Herrington, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Seattle field office. "It was a horrifying betrayal of that trust to abuse his access to children by exploiting them both in person and online, including by filming graphic and explicit videos. Tragically, no prosecution can undo the harm these children suffered or fully erase its record from the Internet. Still, our case team, partner law enforcement agencies, and prosecutors hope that this case can help prevent harm to other vulnerable children by sending a warning to would-be predators that we will hold them accountable for their crimes.”

This case is being brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the U.S. Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals, who sexually exploit children, as well as to identify and rescue victims.

This case is being investigated by the FBI. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Rebecca R. Perez. Sentencing is currently scheduled for January 21, 2026. 

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