Former KY coach, substitute teacher charged with rape, sodomy of student

An Owsley County assistant girls basketball coach and substitute teacher is no longer with the district after being charged with rape and sodomy of a student, Superintendent Gary Cornett said Monday.

Dontarius Pittman, 33, was arrested July 3 and charged with third-degree sodomy and third-degree rape.

Pittman was in a position of authority while allegedly engaging in a sexual relationship with a current student, whom he also coached on the basketball team, according to an arrest citation from Kentucky State Police.

“The victim stated the sexual encounter occurred on June 18, 2025, at approximately 2000 hours, at a boat ramp in Owsley County,” the citation said. “…During a recorded interview Mr. Pittman gave full confession to the allegations and having a sexual encounter with the victim.”

The alleged victim was a juvenile.

As of Monday, Pittman was being held at Three Forks Regional Jail in Beattyville on a $25,000 full cash bond.

Cornett, the superintendent, wrote in an email Monday that Pittman was a former assistant girls basketball coach and part-time substitute teacher.

“He is no longer employed by the district,” Cornett confirmed.

“The Owsley County School District is aware of a former asst. basketball coach being investigated for allegedly having an inappropriate relationship with a minor,” a statement from the district said. “The allegations are being investigated by the Kentucky State Police, and they have the district’s full cooperation.”

General Assembly failed to pass bill

Despite the fact that sexual misconduct by school employees involving students is a continuing problem in Kentucky, the General Assembly this year failed for the third time to pass a bill pushing for more disclosure about school employees accused of sexual abuse.

The legislation would have banned nondisclosure agreements between teachers and school districts regarding teacher misconduct involving minors, including sexual misconduct. The legislation would also have increased disclosure requirements for past misconduct.

The 2025 session was the third year Rep. James Tipton, R-Taylorsville, filed an omnibus teacher sexual misconduct bill. Despite widespread support from most education groups and never receiving a “no” vote in committees or on the House or Senate floor in three years, House Bill 36 did not pass.

This year’s version of the legislation also would have required the Kentucky Department of Education to develop a curriculum that directly addresses inappropriate relationships between teachers and students. Teachers in Kentucky receive some training on sexual abuse, but it does not target inappropriate relationships between teachers and students.

Tipton first filed the bill in 2023 after a 2022 Herald-Leader investigation found sexual misconduct was the leading reason teachers lost their licenses.

A review of 194 teachers whose teaching license was voluntarily surrendered, suspended or revoked by the Kentucky Educational Professional Standards Board from 2016 to 2021 show the vast majority — 61% — trace back to sexual misconduct.

Additionally, the vast majority of those cases involved male teachers and teenage girls.

Tipton previously told the Herald-Leader he has heard concerns from some teachers who say the bill does not address false accusations. Those concerns, he said, are what has stalled the bill for several years.

This story was originally published July 7, 2025 at 3:38 PM.