In the light of a $1.5 million lawsuit settlement, the new director of North Whidbey Parks and Recreation District wants to reassure the community that the organization has strong child-protection policies in place.

In addition, he said the settlement won’t have a big impact on the district’s finances since it will be almost entirely covered by insurance providers.

Bill Walker started work at the pool just a week after a lawsuit against the district was settled. The lawsuit was filed by a former member of the district’s Aquajets swim team who was sexually assaulted by a swim coach in the 1990s. Her attorneys say that another victim has filed suit and two others are on the way.

The women claim they were sexually assaulted as children by former coach Andrew “Andy” King, who is currently serving a 40-year sentence for raping and molesting young swimmers in California.

Walker said district officials are regretful for crimes that occurred in the past, but he hopes to emphasize that a lot has changed since the 1990s. USA Swimming, the governing body for the sport, has adopted a strict code of conduct aimed at protecting children from sexual predators. The policies prohibit adults involved in a team from a wide range of behavior, including hugging, massages, excessive touching and having a swimmer sit on his or her lap. King was accused of all these behaviors.

USA Swimming also requires the reporting of suspected sexual misconduct.

In addition, Walker said the district conducts criminal background checks on employees and has its own code of conduct.

“Our coaches are not only bound by their professional agreement with USA Swimming, but they are accountable to the district,” he said.

“Our goal is to protect the young children who come out to swim,” he added.

The attorney representing the district, Chris Kerley of Spokane, said insurance providers will be on the hook for the $1.5 million settlement, but the district has to pay a $1,000 deductible.

Kerley said he weighed the risk, the expense and the time requirement in deciding to settle the case. He pointed out that King victimized girls at a half dozen districts, but wasn’t caught until the end of a long career.

“I hope what is not lost in all of this is that this fellow Andrew King kept his pedophilia hidden for about 30 years,” he said.

Kerley said the people running the district back in the 1990s were not “rubes,” but included former members of the military and law enforcement. He described King as “a snake in the grass” who was able to deceive people at district after district.

The attorneys for the victim, on the other hand, argued that the district officials ignored obvious red flags 20 years ago.