Trans-identified coach who undressed in girls' locker room resigns after drug, porn videos surface
Editor's note: Warning, this article contains graphic descriptions of sex and drug use.
A trans-identifying high school tennis coach who undressed near students in the girls’ locker room and asked girls about their underwear and periods has resigned after pornographic videos surfaced of him smoking meth while having anal sex.
David Yates started coaching girls’ and boys’ tennis teams at Gettysburg Area High School in 2018 and began self-identifying as a woman named Sasha in 2021. In the video that led to his resignation, Yates referred to himself as a “meth whore.”
The Daily Wire reported that the videos appeared to show Yates smoking meth with the assistance of a woman. Another video showed the high school coach wearing a black bra and engaging in sexual relations with a man in a ski mask.
While the coach has resigned, the recent incident isn't the first time parents within the school district have raised concerns about Yates. Despite complaints about the coach's behavior, the Gettysburg Area School District voted six to two last year to renew Yates’ contract.
Board member Michelle Smyers, who voted not to renew Yates’ contract last year, told The Daily Wire that she received an email from the address “ThugLove” containing the videos in September. Smyers also received a text from Yates’ number saying, “I have information about Sasha Yates that you need to know.”
Smyers received another text from the same number the following morning. The writer identified himself as Yates, who then said that he was prepared to step down as head coach for girls’ tennis by the end of the season.
“That thing that never happens has happened again, and it's going to take a whole lot of people willing to stand up and say no before this insanity ends,” Smyers wrote in an X post. “I'm just hoping this chapter has come to a close. Finally.”
The Gettysburg Area School District did not respond to The Christian Post’s request for comment. This article will be updated if a response is received.
As PennLive reported last September, Gettysburg High School Principal Jeremy Lusk detailed concerns about Yates in a September 2022 memo, including a report that he had undressed in front of female students. The coach was also accused of asking girls about their underwear preferences and menstruation cycles.
Yates claimed he didn't recall asking those questions, but acknowledged that he had changed near students in the girls’ locker room. He claimed that he only removed his shirt while standing in a corner.
Board President Kenneth Hassinger also highlighted complaints at the time about the trans-identified coach using the women’s restroom and walking through the girls’ locker room on the way to the meeting.
Smyers told The Daily Wire that Yates had walked into the locker room when a competing girls’ soccer team was changing clothes and allegedly asked them about their underwear too. One of the girls who complained that the incident made her feel uncomfortable is also the daughter of the school board president.
Smyers alleged in a post on X that the school board president’s wife was upset with her for revealing this information to the media. The mother reportedly said that the board member’s comments could jeopardize her daughter’s safety; however, Smyers argued that the student in question is now in college.
“But this is rich ... she's concerned about the well being of her daughter now? Not in 2022 when Yates was in the locker room with her? Stripping down and asking the girls about panties and periods?”
“Oh, did I mention the school board president's wife is also a teacher in the district?” Smyers stated. “And did you know teachers are MANDATED reporters in the state of PA?”
Samantha Kamman is a reporter for The Christian Post. She can be reached at: samantha.kamman@christianpost.com. Follow her on Twitter: @Samantha_Kamman