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Polk Coach Accused Of Lewd Actions Passed Screening

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By BILLY TOWNSEND | The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 24, 2008

LAKELAND - As a "community coach," Fred Standifer underwent a school district vetting process that included a drug screen, criminal background check and orientation for behavior with children, according to the Polk County School District's top human resources administrator.

Fred Standifer

None of the checks turned up problems, Assistant Superintendent Ron Ciranna said.

Standifer, the Lake Region High School junior varsity girls basketball head coach, was arrested Wednesday. He is accused of telling a player to drop her shorts and touching another player, the Polk County Sheriff's Office said.

Standifer, 48, of 502 William Ave., Winter Haven, told one of the students to "drop her shorts" because he wanted to do a sexual act with her, according to an affidavit.

He also is accused of touching the 16-year-old student on her thigh during a bus ride after a game, the affidavit states.

The second girl, a 15-year-old, told authorities Standifer grabbed her buttocks while they were at Burger King, according to the affidavit.

The incidents started in August, the report states. Standifer was charged with battery, solicitation of sexual battery on a victim younger than 18, lewd conduct and false imprisonment. Standifer is being held without bail at Polk County Jail until his first appearance this morning.

The coaching job was part-time. Standifer's main place of employment was the Department of Juvenile Justice's halfway house in Bartow, which serves boys ages 10 to 14. He worked as a custodian and had only indirect contact with the boys, according to the sheriff's office and the department.

He was employed by Sunshine Youth Services, the private contractor that operates the Polk halfway house. Sunshine Youth Services performed a background check on Standifer in January 2007, according to the department. It turned up no problems.

The Lake Region investigation occurred Wednesday, after the students reported the touching and inappropriate words to school officials and a school resource officer, said W.J. Martin, chief of the criminal investigations division for the sheriff's office.

A detective went to the school and interviewed the students who spoke about how uncomfortable they felt.

The 16-year-old told the detective that Standifer locked her inside a room at the high school. That's when he told her, "I want everything you can offer" and backed her into a corner, according to the affidavit.

He told her to remove her shorts, the report states. After the student started to cry, Standifer let her leave the room, according to the affidavit.

The second student told the detective that Standifer often grabbed her buttocks, according to the report.

The 15-year-old told the coach she couldn't find one of her basketball shirts, the affidavit states. Standifer told her that if she didn't find it, she would have to give him a hug every day for a week, the affidavit states. She couldn't find the shirt, and the coach unlocked a cabinet and took out her shirt, the report states. Standifer said she owed him a hug for a week, according to the affidavit.

During the investigation, the detectives staged and monitored at least one brief phone conversation between the coach and one of the students, Martin said.

In the call, the student asked Standifer why he locked her in the room and wanted her to remove her shorts, the report states. The coach said he was testing her and she passed the test, according to the affidavit.

The detective interviewed the coach in Bartow. Standifer told investigators he was only testing the 16-year-old, the report states. The coach conceded they would have had sexual intercourse "if she had failed the test," according to the affidavit.

He denied the incident with the 15-year-old.

News Channel 8 reporter Jennifer Leigh contributed to this report. Reporter Billy Townsend can be reached at (863) 284-1409 or wtownsend@tampatrib.com.

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