An alleged victim has broken her silence about missing high school football coach Travis Turner, who has been charged with possession of child pornography and solicitation of a minor.
A letter was read on behalf of the alleged victim at a meeting of the Wise County School Board on Monday, January 12, according to the Kingsport Times News, who was in attendance at the meeting.
“I felt like I was the problem. I felt like I had embarrassed the school, damaged the reputation of the coaching staff and disrupted something I was supposed to protect instead of myself,” the letter said, which was read by Wise County resident Stephen Murray.
In her letter, she claimed she was “a victim of exploitation by a teacher in this county.”
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The alleged victim’s grandfather also spoke at the meeting, saying, “I’m proud of my granddaughter.”
“You as a board need to make some hard decisions … what she did probably saved some other children,” he added.
Another Wise County resident who spoke at the meeting said that the alleged victim was pulled aside and questioned by the Union High School principal without her parents around.
Prior to his disappearance, Turner has coached at Union High since 2011, where he also worked as a physical education teacher.
“Police or Social Services were not notified as they should have by law,” the resident said. “Travis Turner is either a fugitive or deceased. How long is he going to remain on the payroll?”
The Wise County School Board did not respond to Us Weekly’s inquiry about whether Turner is still being paid by the district. The board declined to address Turner’s employment status at the meeting, citing personnel issues.
Murray, who read the letter from the alleged victim, spoke to News Channel 11 after the school board meeting and called the behavior of the board “shocking.”
“I really couldn’t tell you other than it’s just a culture of we sweep things under the rug and hopefully we just bury things and no one talks about it,” Murray said.
Turner’s case comes on the heels of an incident involving former Union High School teacher Timothy Lee Meador in 2023, who was indicted on three felony charges and pleaded guilty to two counts of indecent liberties with a child.
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Murray’s criticism largely fell on Wise County superintendent Mike Goforth, who Murray suggested was unfit for the job.
“If you look at the pattern of behavior and the time frame this has all happened, [Goforth] has been at some form of leadership,” Murray said. “At some point somebody has to be able to take accountability and be like, ‘You know, I’ve been at the helm for this long and I can’t stop this abuse from happening so maybe I should step down.’”
The school board meeting on Monday was the first to allow for public comment since Turner went missing. The board vowed to address the comments made at their next meeting, which is scheduled for February.
Turner disappeared on November 20, last seen by members of his family walking into the wooded area behind his home carrying a rifle.
