Kaleb Tierce, the 24-year-old teacher of a high school English course in a small Texas town, is under fresh scrutiny as allegations of sexual assualt unfolded yesterday from three female students.
The community of Tuscola, Texas, 715 strong, had already been up in arms over Kaleb Tierce’s selection of Cormac McCarthy‘s "Child of God," as a reading assignment for his Freshman Pre-Advanced placement charges. Cormac McCarthy is an American novelist best known for No Country for Old Men, which was later adapted to film.
Tuscola parents pointed to the 2007 Pulitzer-prize winning author’s depiction of pedophilia, its use of racist language. Parents demanded Jim Ned High School fire Kaleb Tierce immediately.
The town divided sharply as supporters for the prized teacher and assistant football coach emblazened themselves with armbands in solidarity. Others called for his resignation and censorship of the book. Tuscola has no public library or book stores.
One blogger, allegedly a cousin of Kalebv Tierce, posits that after a 14-year-old girl brought the book home, her father Jim Rhodes, a state trooper with small town clout, complained to the school and sheriff. Blogger Danielle said Rhodes unleashed "a maelstrom of small town politics, abuse of power, and blind self-preservation that boggles the mind."
In a local newspaper, the Rhodes neighbor Jill Willis said the indictment had grown out of hand, saying, "It’s like a free-for-all. I hate it that it’s happening. I hate it for them. I hate it for the coach."
Willis wished for a return to quiet, small town life: "It’d be nice if we could get back to a ‘let’s-see-what-(Colt) McCoy-does-this-week’ community." Colt McCoy has acheived local celebrity status as the town’s football star.
Now police reveal another turn to the story.
Three of Kaleb Tierce’s former students have come forward, accusing him of kissing and exposing himself to a former student, and asking another student what "she would do for a better grade." Kaleb Tierce surrendered himself Friday and was released on $30,000 bail. He could face 2 to 10 years for the third-degree felony.