Texas high school coach resigns amid strip club scandal
An embattled Texas high school soccer coach has resigned his position after charging more than $5,000 to a school district credit card at a strip club.
JD Bales was the boys soccer coach at Bridgeport High School and a special education teacher at a middle school in the same district until Tuesday. According to the Wise County Messenger in North Texas, Bales' resignation came after he repaid the $5,455.81 charge.
The incident took place in Houston during a coach's clinic in July. Bridgeport is 300 miles away from Houston.
The Bridgeport ISD board investigated the charge once it saw the amount and recipient.
The resignation comes just months after six Bridgeport boys soccer players were arrested after a two-month hazing investigation that took place during playoffs last spring. The players - five adults and one juvenile - were charged with "personal hazing," a Class B misdemeanor. Those charges are believed to still be pending, the Messenger reported.
The hazing incidents were alleged to have taken place during the 2022-23 soccer team. Bridgeport Police Chief Steve Stanford described the nature of the allegations in May in a statement to the Messenger:
“These incidents involved the underclassmen (some as young as 14 years old) being restrained or held down while multiple subjects removed articles of the victim’s clothing, including their pants and underwear. The victim reported that while in an unclothed state, they were filmed and made to repeat phrases such as ‘I’m your b****.’”
Bridgeport Police Chief Steve Stanford (via The Messenger)
The Bulls went 77-33-7 and reached the postseason five times in Bales' tenure. The district is in the process of choosing an interim coach.
This is a developing story.
