Charges Filed in KHS Football Case
Kingfisher’s head football coach, a former coach, a school board member and even the father of the alleged victim have been formally charged in a case that’s been overshadowing the school’s football program for more than two years.
Head coach Jeff Myers was charged Tuesday with a felony count of child neglect in Kingfisher County District Court.
The charge was filed by District Attorney Michael J. Fields’ office and signed by Assistant District Attorney Hope Bryant.
The charge resulted in Myers being put on administrative leave Wednesday.
“The district has placed Mr. Myers on administrative leave pending the outcome of this legal matter,” Superintendent David Glover said in a statement to the Times & Free Press on Wednesday. “Because this is a personnel issue, I am unable to provide additional information at this time.”
As a result of the suspension, Glover said Myers will not take part in football activities or his teaching duties at the school.
Micah Nall, the former assistant coach, is facing two felony charges, one for child abuse and another for perjury.
Facing misdemeanor counts of failure to report child abuse are Dana Golbek, who is currently serving her second term on the board of education, and Justin Mecklenburg.
As of press time, Myers, Mecklenburg and Golbek had turned themselves into authorities and had posted bond.
Myers’ bond was $15,000 while those for Mecklenburg and Golbek were set at $1,000.
They have been given new dates to appear at Kingfisher County District Court.
Associate District Judge Lance Schneiter has recused himself from those cases meaning District Judge Paul Woodward will reassign them to a different judge.
As of the posting of this article, there was no record yet of Nall having turned himself in.
Justin Mecklenburg is the father of Mason Mecklenburg, who in July 2021 filed a civil suit against Myers, Nall, two other assistant coaches and the school district alleging a culture of hazing, abuse and bullying within the program.
Mason Mecklenburg was a member of the KHS football team from 2017-2020 and graduated KHS in the spring of 2021.
Separate from the civil suit, the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation opened a criminal investigation into possible wrongdoing involved in the allegations.
OSBI Special Agent Phillip D. Ott is the affiant on the probable cause affidavits attached to the charges of all four individuals.
Neither affidavit attached to the felony charges details instances that occurred specifically to Mason Mecklenburg.
According to Ott's affidavit filed in Myers' criminal case, Myers admitted on Aug. 2 during his deposition for the civil case that as head coach “he was responsible for the football program and the conduct of the players while they were with him” and that he was also “responsible for the conduct of his assistant coaches.”
The affidavit also states the OSBI learned during the course of the investigation that players were “left alone and most of the time not supervised by an adult or faculty member” while in the locker room at the Donovan Boutwell Center.
It was in the locker room, the affidavit states, that players took part in “The Ring,” described by witnesses interviewed by OSBI agents as involving players who “wrestled or boxed each other to settle differences that they had had on the field.”
The affiant states 14 former KHS football players were interviewed who admitted having knowledge of, witnessing or taking part in the “The Ring.”
Four former players told investigators they witnessed Myers “watching ‘The Ring’ wrestling matches” while five additional former players said Myers knew of “The Ring.”
In his deposition, according to the affidavit, Myers said he was aware of “The Ring” and had witnessed one of the wrestling matches.
A deposition of assistant coach Derek Patterson, who was named in the civil suit, revealed he knew of “The Ring” and that it was also taking place when he was a KHS football player from 2007-2010, the affidavit reads.
Ott’s affidavit concluded with “Myers was responsible for the health, safety and welfare of each football player who was participating in extracurricular activities while attending Kingfisher Public Schools. Myers allowed students to be unsupervised and participate in fights where injuries occurred. Myers admitted knowledge of these fights and continued to allow them to go on.”
Three instances were detailed in the affidavit surrounding Nall’s charge of abuse.
The OSBI investigation revealed testimony of a former player who said Nall grabbed another player by his facemask and punched him “in the face three to four times” during the 2015-16 season.
The affidavit also states that six former players interviewed by the OSBI say they witnessed Nall wrestle a former player in the locker room when that player was a freshman.
In his deposition in July for the civil suit, Nall admitted to wrestling the student and said it was a “very, very poor decision,” according to the affidavit.
Nall has also been accused of verbal abuse, some of which was laid out in the affidavit.
In particular, one former player, who was on an I.E.P. (Individualized Education Plan), requested the plays be put on cards for him to study at home, an accommodation which he was allowed as a middle school football player, but which Nall allegedly denied.
When the player would miss an assignment on the field, Nall would call him derogatory names, the affidavit said.
The affidavit also states that Nall admitted in his deposition that “I probably said some hurtful things” to the specific player, who said “he has flashbacks of Nall calling him” the derogatory terms “when he messes up at work.”
Nall joined the Kingfisher staff prior to the 2013 season.
He resigned the week of the 2020 opener after an investigation into his role into an incident at a practice referred to as “bull in the ring” in which one player was reportedly directed by Nall to be hit (in football terms) by other players repeatedly.
A criminal investigation into that case ultimately led to Nall pleading guilty to obstructing that investigation by lying to a police officer.
The affidavit states that Nall “made several contradictory statements under oath regarding events that had already been proven during the course of a previous criminal investigation in 2020” during his July deposition, which led to the perjury charge.
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The affidavit filed against Justin Mecklenburg states he and his wife Lyndy Mecklenburg first learned of the alleged abuse to Mason Mecklenburg when he was “approximately 15 years old.” A statement to the OSBI through their attorney stated their reasonings “for never reporting the physical and verbal abuse committed by his teammates and coaches,” the affidavit reads.
It also notes a meeting between the Mecklenburgs and Myers in 2019, which they recorded with audio. The affidavit says the Mecklenburgs spoke with Myers “about the abuse happening within the football program and they spoke to Myers about the playing time” of Mason.
Affidavits also list a meeting between the Mecklenburgs and Dr. Daniel Craig and Jay Wood on June 4, 2021. Craig was just beginning his tenure as the district’s superintendent and Wood was the athletic director.
A picture of bruises on Mason was shown to the then-KPS administrators and the Mecklenburgs detailed how Mason was abused during his first two years of high school, according to the affidavit.
The affidavits also detail a meeting in which Justin and Mason Mecklenburg went to Golbek’s residence on June 27, 2021.
A retired teacher, Golbek was at that time serving her first term on the KPS Board of Education.
The affidavit says the Mecklenburgs “provided Golbek a packet and spoke with her about the abuse that happened” to Mason as well as other alleged abuses in the football program.
An affidavit states Justin Mecklenburg also met with Kingfisher Police Chief David Catron inquiring if anyone had filed any reports of abuse within the football program and asked “off the record” what to do if he wanted to file complaints.
Justin Mecklenburg filed no report to the KPD or the Kingfisher County Sheriff’s Office and never contacted the district attorney’s office, according to Ott’s affidavit.
It stated that the Mecklenburgs were aware of the alleged abuse and “spoke to school officials on multiple occasions regarding the abuse; however, they never reported the abuse to law enforcement.”
Golbek said in her interview with the OSBI that she turned over the packet she received from the Mecklenburgs to Craig “and believed Craig contacted law enforcement shortly thereafter.”
In her deposition for the civil case in May, Golbek stated she “received training on when to report child abuse and who to report child abuse to," according to the affidavit.
The affidavit reiterated that Golbek only made the report to Craig and “never reported this to the police or to the Department of Human Services.”
According to a police report, it was Craig who initiated an investigation by contacting the Kingfisher Police Department. The KPD eventually turned over the investigation to the OSBI.
The misdemeanors carry a punishment of up to one year in jail and/or a fine of $500.
Nall’s perjury charge is punishable by up to five years in prison.
Both the child abuse and child neglect charges are punishable by imprisonment for life, up to one year in the county jail and/or a fine of $500 to $5,000.
In Myers’ absence, Stan Blundell has been named the interim head football coach.
Blundell has been an assistant in the football program for more than two decades. He’s also currently the assistant athletic director, head baseball coach and is a wrestling coach.
The rest of the coaching staff remains intact, Glover said.
The superintendent met with the coaching staff and players Wednesday morning.
He added in his statement:
“Nothing is more important to Kingfisher Public Schools than the safety, health and well-being of our students. As a school district, we reaffirm our commitment to provide a welcoming, respectful and safe environment for every student and student-athlete.”