Former Celina ISD teacher, coach arrested again over recording children in locker rooms, police say
Caleb Elliott, the former Celina ISD teacher and coach facing numerous criminal charges relating to recording children in locker rooms, was arrested again on Thursday, the Celina Police Department said.
Celina PD announced Friday that Elliott now faces a charge of sexual performance of a child, which is a second-degree felony. The department said the charge came as a result of its investigation into Elliott, including witness accounts from a middle school locker room.
Attorney Paul Herz says this is a direct result of the lawsuit they filed.
"It's a direct result of a report by a child by one of the affected minors, specifically the one who was made to do jumping jacks naked," said Herz.
The lawsuit outlines that the victim's backpack was confiscated by Elliot, who told the student he had to do jumping jacks fully naked to get it back.
Texas criminal law defines the charge "as a crime that lures a child younger than 18 years of age to perform an act that visually depicts the lewd exhibition of the private area," Celina PD said. "This would include asking victims to perform activities while they were naked or partially clothed."
The department did not offer specifics about the charge against Elliott. CBS News Texas has requested an arrest warrant affidavit, which may contain more details.
Criminal charges against Caleb Elliott
Herz says when the first filed the lawsuit in late October, they were only representing three victims; that number has now grown to 12.
"I expect there to be more victims to come forward to our lawsuit or others, but just to collaborate as a unified front either way, against the school district and Mr. Elliott to find out what really happened and what they knew and when," said Herz.
Elliott, 26, was first arrested in early October on a charge of invasive visual recording. The next week, he was arrested again, this time for possession or promotion of child pornography.
According to an arrest warrant from October, Elliott secretly recorded several boys in the locker room during school hours. The warrant states that 12 photos were recovered from his phone, all described as meeting the criteria of child pornography and showing young boys in various states of dress and undress.
Elliott taught 6th-grade history and coached 8th-grade football at Moore Middle School. He was placed on indefinite administrative leave following the initial charge, and later resigned.
Scrutiny on father, school district
The families of dozens of alleged victims are participating in multiple lawsuits against Celina ISD.
Elliott, the son of Celina High School football coach Bill Elliott, followed his father into coaching and started working as a substitute teacher in 2022.
One lawsuit alleges that the district ignored allegations that Elliott had a sexual relationship with a Celina High School student in 2023, moving him to Moore Middle School instead of firing him or reporting him to police.
The criminal charges are tied directly to his alleged behavior in the Moore Middle School locker room.
The lawsuit also claims that at least one Celina ISD employee reported to the school that Caleb Elliott "behaved inappropriately with children," but was told that was not true.