Coach at high school in Midlands charged with sex crime involving student, police say
A man who’s both a teacher and coach at a Midlands high school was arrested on a sex crime charge that involved a student, the Sumter Police Department said Monday.
On Friday, Peter Roderick Calhoun Jr. was charged with sexual battery with a student 18 years of age or older where there is direct supervisory authority (no aggravated force or coercion), Sumter County court records show.
The 57-year-old Simpsonville resident works at Lakewood High School, and the crime involved an inappropriate, sexual relationship with a student, police said in a news release. Police described Calhoun as a coach at the school on Old Manning Road, and the school lists his job as PE teacher.
An investigation began in early May after officers responded to an indecent exposure call in Sumter that involved Calhoun and a female, later identified as a student, police said.
During their investigation, officers learned there were multiple encounters between Calhoun and the student, none of which were on Sumter School District property, according to the release.
Information about how long the inappropriate, sexual relationship was going on was not available. There was no word if any other students were victims of sex crimes involving Calhoun.
Police said Calhoun was booked at the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office Detention Center. There was no word about his bond status, or if Calhoun is currently behind bars.
Calhoun, who began working at the school in August 2022, was placed on administrative leave, school district spokesperson Shelly Galloway told The State.
Despite the arrest, police are continuing to investigate Calhoun.
If convicted on the felony charge, Calhoun faces a maximum punishment of 5 years in prison, according to South Carolina law.
Calhoun is not listed on the South Carolina sex offender registry.
This is at least the third time an employee of a Sumter County school has been charged with sex crimes involving minors since mid March.
On April 6, Crestwood High School girls basketball coach Tony Wilson, 54, was charged with third-degree assault and battery, criminal sexual conduct with a minor, two counts of unlawful dissemination of obscene material to a person under 18, and two counts of criminal solicitation of a minor, the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office said.
Wilson was taken to the county jail and was later released on a $75,000 bond, the sheriff’s office said. A Sumter County School District spokeswoman said that Wilson resigned on April 6.
On March 20, Andre Girard Johnson, a coach at Sumter Christian School, was charged with criminal solicitation of a minor, the sheriff’s office said. The school’s administration had contacted law enforcement and reported that Johnson was sending inappropriate text messages to the victim, a juvenile enrolled at the school. The messages included Johnson expressing that he wished to have sex with the victim, as well as pornographic images, according to the sheriff’s office.
Johnson surrendered to deputies and was released from the county jail after posting a $5,000 surety bond, the sheriff’s office said. Once charges were filed, Johnson was terminated by the school, a Sumter Christian spokesman told The State.
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This story was originally published May 15, 2023 at 2:14 PM with the headline "Coach at high school in Midlands charged with sex crime involving student, police say."
