Former Celina ISD teacher, coach Caleb Elliott indicted on multiple felony charges involving students
Former Celina Independent School District teacher and coach Caleb Elliott has officially been indicted by a Collin County grand jury on felony charges.
Charges include possession of child pornography, invasive visual recording and sexual performance by a child. Elliott is accused of secretly recording boys in the Moore Middle School locker room.
Investigation into Caleb Elliott
Caleb Elliott, a former teacher and coach at Moore Middle School, was arrested multiple times in October and November 2025.
He is accused of invasive visual recording and was later charged with possession and production of child pornography after police recovered illicit images and videos from his phone. Caleb Elliott was previously indicted by a federal grand jury on eight charges of sexual exploitation of children for allegedly coercing minors into sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing child pornography. There are currently dozens of alleged victims.
After his arrest, the school's principal resigned, and Elliott's father, longtime athletic director and head coach Bill Elliott, retired.
Lawsuit claims against Celina ISD
Lawsuits allege Caleb Elliott secretly recorded and photographed nude boys in the middle school locker room and showers, and in some cases, coerced students to perform nude acts, like jumping jacks and burpees, to create the images.
Lawsuits also claim that Celina ISD was grossly negligent and enabled Caleb Elliott's misconduct, primarily to protect the reputation of the successful football program, as Caleb Elliott is the son of Bill Elliott, the long-time head football coach and athletic director.
Lawsuits also allege the district knew of prior, serious misconduct: Elliott allegedly had an "illicit sexual relationship with a vulnerable teenage student" while working at Celina High School in the 2022-2023 school year. Instead of reporting Caleb Elliott to law enforcement, the lawsuit states, the district transferred him to Moore Middle School in 2023.
The district previously filed a response, denying all allegations and citing immunity under state law — even though a new Texas law that took effect in September removes that immunity in cases involving sexual misconduct.
The district says an 84-page, third-party report found no evidence that any staff members knew about the alleged crimes before Elliott was arrested.
But that heavily redacted report also indicated several failures in how the district handled the situation.
It cited what it described as "systemic failures" within the district. Those included a principal who said she felt pressured to hire Caleb Elliott because of his father's influence, concerns over Bill Elliott's role in athletic hiring, and an unusual safe full of cash found in his office — which Bill Elliott said came from parent payments for physicals.
Some parents are calling for board members to step down.
New Texas law allows for civil lawsuits
State Rep. Mitch Little, who represents part of Denton County in the Texas House, previously said a new law he authored in the legislative session has made the lawsuits possible.
House Bill 4623, which passed with bipartisan support, was signed into law by Gov. Greg Abbott and took effect on Sept. 1. It removes sovereign immunity from school districts and their employees in sexual abuse cases when they act with gross negligence or recklessness. Little said that victims' families were previously not able to take civil legal action against districts in cases like this.
Attorney says victims traumatized, accountability needed
"On a weekly basis, we're learning more about this predator," said civil attorney Quentin Brogdon. "He is every parent's worst nightmare
Brogdon is representing the parents of nearly two dozen boys who were allegedly secretly video recorded by Caleb Elliott while they were undressing in the school's locker room.
