ST. LOUIS (AP) - A high school cross country coach is charged with felony sodomy involving a female runner who says she was abused 17 years ago.
James Bliss Wilder III is on leave with pay as Lindbergh High School track coach and physical education teacher at Sperreng Middle School after his Tuesday arrest. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch (bit.ly/16d0IcC ) reports the alleged victim recently came forward. She was a 16-year-old member of the Lindbergh High track team at the time.
Wilder faces six counts of second-degree statutory sodomy for crimes that prosecutors say occurred between August 1996 and the teen's 18th birthday in 1997. Police say some of the sex acts took place at the high school. He remains in jail on a $50,000 cash bond. Online court records don't list a defense attorney.