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Celina High School head football coach Bill Elliott is one of five defendants named in the second lawsuit that has been filed since the coach’s son, Caleb Elliott, was arrested by local law enforcement officers and charged with invasive visual recording and possession or promotion of child pornography.
The lawsuit, filed in a Collin County Court on Monday, accuses Celina ISD officials of ignoring known “signs of wrongdoing and child abuse,” thereby allowing Caleb Elliott, a sixth-grade social studies teacher and eighth-grade football coach, to remain employed by the district. Elliott was accused earlier this month of using his phone to capture images in the Moore Middle School locker room that “meet the legal definition of child pornography.”
The latest filing represents three minor students affected by the filming. According to a press release by the plaintiff’s law firm, 30 families have been notified that their child may have been pictured. In addition to naming Bill and Caleb Elliott, the lawsuit accuses Celina ISD Superintendent Thomas Maglisceau, Moore Middle School Principal Allison Ginn, and the school district of failing to report accusations of prior misconduct leveled against Caleb Elliott.
A separate lawsuit, filed on Oct. 21, states that district officials were made aware that Caleb Elliott had initiated an “improper and unlawful” relationship with a high school senior during the 2022-2023 school year while working as a substitute teacher and high school football coach under his father. The lawsuits allege that district officials then moved Caleb Elliott to a middle school position, where, in the 2024-2025 school year, he was caught placing a camera in the boys locker room.
Officials banned Caleb Elliott from entering the locker room when students were inside, the filings claim, but did not remove him from his position.
“When faced with an adult who had sexually exploited a child, Celina ISD’s solution was to give him access to younger children,” the Oct. 27 lawsuit states. “The District simply hoped that nothing else would happen, that their secret would stay buried, that they could protect the Elliott family name.”
In a press conference on Wednesday, attorney Quintin Brogdon suggested that at least one more lawsuit may be filed in relation to the scandal. He said that attorneys have had preliminary conversations with at least a dozen families affected by the filming, and that he expects some to pursue civil litigation, although a filing is in its “infancy” stage.
The first lawsuit, which names just Celina ISD and Caleb Elliott as defendants, makes mention of the fact that Bill Elliott “ascended to a Celina hero” after leading the Bobcats to a 2024 state championship. Both lawsuits suggest that the coach’s status in the district influenced the district’s handling of Caleb Elliott.
“In our community, the prestige and power of a successful football program — and the singular influence of its head coach — became an end unto itself, eclipsing the most basic duties of care owed to children,” Monday’s lawsuit states.
Maglisceau has said that Caleb Elliott surrendered his teaching license earlier this month when he resigned from the district, and Bill Elliott and Allison Ginn have been placed on a non-disciplinary leave of absence while an investigation is underway.
A statement from the district earlier this week announced that Bill Elliott will not be permitted to attend football games, including tonight’s scheduled Senior Night celebration, while on leave. A petition urging district officials to allow the coach to attend tonight’s ceremony has over 900 signatures.
“District administration is aware of a petition circulating via social media asking the District to allow Coach Bill Elliott to participate in Friday’s Senior Night celebration. CISD has also received notice from parents and community members, including families with student-athletes at Moore Middle School, who have expressed concern that this might be allowed,” a statement from the district said. “Bill Elliott will not be permitted to enter or attend Friday’s Senior Night celebration. Certainly, we recognize the added disruption this additional matter has caused for our parents, community, and most importantly, our students.”
