STAYTON (OR)
Our Town Santiam [Stayton, OR]
August 5, 2026
By Stephen Floyd
A former vice principal at Regis St. Mary’s School, in Stayton, has been acquitted of sexual abuse charges following a three-day trial in Marion County Circuit Court.
Christopher Wayne Seibert, 57, of Salem, was acquitted by Judge Thomas Hart on Wednesday after Hart determined there was not enough evidence to support a conviction.
The case has been closed and Seibert has no other pending criminal matters.
He was indicted July 11, 2025, on four counts of first-degree sexual abuse and one count of second-degree unlawful sexual penetration after a former student claimed Seibert allegedly touched her inappropriately. Seibert denied wrongdoing and was released on $250,000 bail.
The trial began Monday and Seibert waived his right to a jury, allowing a judge to hear evidence and determine guilt instead of jurors. Both the prosecution and the defense presented numerous witnesses including law enforcement, school employees, social workers and those who personally knew Seibert and the alleged victim.
Prosecutors alleged the student was abused multiple times between 2021 and 2023, beginning when she was younger than 14. Hart determined the state was unable to prove these allegations beyond a reasonable doubt.
If Seibert had been convicted as charged, he faced at least 75 months in prison.
Seibert left Regis in 2023 to become principal at St. Joseph Catholic School, in Salem. He was no longer employed at St. Joseph at the time of his indictment, and his Oregon teaching license is not currently active.