Texas school, team under fire after sex offender given access to teens | #childpredator | #kidsaftey | #childsaftey

The Texas Home Educators Sports Association (THESA) thought it could get away with allowing a registered sex offender to coach minors by sending parents a waiver to sign, with the coach’s testimony attached, according to Amy Smith at watchkeep.org.

The report comes a day after Smith uncovered that Tommy Whiteman, a 46-year-old former Houston Astros prospect, was the head coach for the THESA Riders based out of Fort Worth, and had previously worked with the Haskell High School softball team—located almost an hour north of Abilene—while also operating an indoor baseball and softball facility in Keller called Redemptive Sports. He is currently listed on the Texas Sex Offender Registry until 2030 for online solicitation of a minor back in 2010, meaning communicating or distributing sexually explicit material. He also has previous domestic violence and assault convictions in Oklahoma from incidents in 1999 and 2000.

Whiteman was listed as the head baseball coach as late as Sunday and is no longer listed on MaxPreps. The team’s website also doesn’t list his name, instead listing Bryan Crews as the head coach. 

The waiver was a part of THESA’s registration packet, and reads: “Coach Tommy can speak first-hand about the dark shadows of sports, especially professionally. He, himself a talented athlete, spent many years praising himself and feeding his flesh. The Lord so graciously refused to let the world have him and rescued him from his sin in a tremendously dramatic, yet necessary way. Tommy now spends his time pouring into young men around him, helping them navigate this tricky culture with Christ. His heart is to not only share his vast knowledge of baseball skills, but more importantly, the freedom he found in his Redeemer. Before you commit to Coach Tommy’s leadership, check out his testimony here.” 

The waiver mentioned nothing about his offender status. Smith posted that a THESA baseball parent told her that Whiteman only spoke of his troubles with pornography. He further elaborates on his arrest in the “About Me” section of Redemptive Sports’ website, which also has its own waiver.

“Eventually I found myself in chat rooms late into the night while my wife and innocent infant daughter slept.  I was engaging in inappropriate conversations that led to adultery.  One of these online conversations ended up being with a minor…but it was never a minor…it was a police officer.  The sting went down exactly like you would imagine on T.V.  It was no question the worst day AND the best day of my life.” 

Southlake Carroll ISD, located in the Dallas-Fort Worth suburbs, had Whiteman on a list of approved off-campus activity providers, which is now being investigated, according to an e-mail from Southlake Carroll ISD.

“Carroll ISD is aware of concerns regarding an Off-Campus Physical Activities (OCPA) provider and is currently reviewing the situation. The provider in question was utilized by one student during the 2022-23 school year at a parent’s request and, to our knowledge, has not been used by any other CISD students since that time. At present, participation in OCPA programs has been driven by parent request. When parents request that an outside activity be considered for PE credit, the District has historically allowed that decision to remain at the parent’s discretion,” a spokesperson with Carroll ISD said in a statement to Chron. 

In addition, Carroll ISD puts on its registration packet when students apply for PE credit this: “I understand that the District has no control over the operations or premises of my child’s particular activity. I further understand that my child will not be under the supervision of a District employee but will be under the supervision of a representative of the assigned activity while participating in the activity.”

“The Board of Trustees is reviewing the internal processes related to OCPA activity approvals and will evaluate how the District should proceed moving forward. The safety and well-being of our students remain our highest priority, and we take all concerns seriously,” Carroll ISD’s spokesperson said. 

However, according to the school board’s agenda documents, Whiteman’s facility, ‘Redemptive Sports,’ was only up for approval as of Feb. 2024 for the 2024-25 school year. 

THESA has not responded to Chron’s request for comment. 

THESA is scheduled to participate in the 2026 Homeschool World Series, which will feature 21 of the best Christian-based home-schooled teams all over North America. The week-long tournament begins on Monday, April 27, and is hosted at the Lake Myrtle Sports Complex in Auburndale, Florida. 

“Thank you for bringing this to our attention. We are checking into this situation now,” said Jeff Roberts, president of the Homeschool World Series Association, to Chron when asked about Whiteman’s status with the team on Friday. 

According to the law offices of Ned Barnett, Texas law prevents registered sex offenders from working in places frequented by children, including schools, daycare centers and playgrounds or attending school events like sports games. Some can interact with children at family gatherings or public events, supervised when interacting with children according to court orders and the nature of the offense.

This story has been updated with comments from Carroll ISD and the school board agenda’s notes from February 2024.