The Office of the State Attorney (SAO) for Florida’s Eighth Judicial Circuit has dismissed criminal charges against three Santa Fe High School administrators accused of child neglect and failing to report suspected child abuse. 

In June 2025, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) filed sworn complaints against former SFHS principal Timothy Wright, athletic director Michele Faulk and assistant principal David Rendek. The recommended charges by the FDLE, according to court records, were child neglect and failure to report suspected child abuse—both third-degree felonies. 

All three were accused of failing to report alleged incidents of “inappropriate contact” of a sexual nature, with a female minor student by former SFHS baseball coach and media specialist Travis Yeckring. 

But a Jan. 7 memorandum from the SAO said that the FDLE filed the sworn complaints while knowing that no charges would be brought against Yeckring. The memorandum also said that, prior to the sworn complaints, the state attorney’s office advised the FDLE that investigators lacked sufficient evidence to charge Faulk, Rendek and Wright. 

“An Assistant State Attorney, after conducting extensive legal research and internal discussions, opined that it would be both legally and practically impossible to charge any of the named defendants with a criminal act unless there was sufficient evidence to show that the defendants knew Mr. Yeckring had committed an act of child abuse against a victim, and the defendant failed to report it,” the memorandum stated. 

The memorandum also noted that the FDLE investigated what would normally be a local matter for the Alachua Police Department or the Alachua County Sheriff’s Office. While not outside their authority, FDLE normally investigates inside another jurisdiction after a request, but the SAO said no request was made in this case. 

With the charges dismissed, Mainstreet reached out to the school district on Tuesday afternoon to inquire about the status of Faulk and Rendek and whether both were still with Alachua County Public Schools (ACPS).  

In an email reply, Jackie Johnson, ACPS spokesperson, said district staff were reviewing the situation to determine the next steps 

Faulk and Rendek were placed on administrative leave once the school district received confirmation of the FDLE complaints. Wright, meanwhile, was no longer with SFHS when the complaints were filed, retiring in 2024. 

The SAO memorandum said the FDLE used a “novel legal theory” to levy the charges against Wright, Faulk and Rendek. The FDLE investigators admitted that none of Yeckring’s actions qualify as child abuse but argued that the totality of circumstances and actions should have led the charged administrators to suspect child abuse and report it, the SAO said. 

The memorandum spoke against Yeckring’s behavior but said the three SFHS administrators could not be charged for failing to report a child abuse that even the FDLE could not find evidence for.  

“It is clear from the evidence that Mr. Yeckring’s conduct was inappropriate, reprehensible, and a likely violation of school policies,” the memorandum stated. 

FDLE pointed to many actions as part of the “cumulative nature of all the incidents reported to the school administration.” The FDLE list included social media communication with female students, inappropriately staring at female students, asking about female students’ romantic relationships, showing female students photos of his dogs and himself shirtless, flirty messages, purchasing food for female students and compliments to female students. 

However, according to the FDLE’s investigation, Yeckring’s behavior did not violate any Florida Statute. Instead, the memorandum notes that Yeckring’s actions “appear to be consistent with what law enforcement would describe as ‘grooming’ behavior.’” 

The memorandum defines grooming “as a deliberate pattern of behavior used by an offender to establish an emotional connection, trust and a position of power over a victim—typically a minor or vulnerable adult—with the goal of sexual abuse or exploitation. 

“Here, FDLE appears to be attempting to punish the [SFHS administrators] for failing to report this behavior to [Department of Children and Families],” the memorandum said. “Unfortunately, the Florida Legislature has been asked to address and criminalize grooming behavior and has thus far declined to do so.” 

The memorandum stated that law enforcement officers have a responsibility to report suspected child abuse. However, according to the memorandum, neither the FDLE nor any parent has reported the “cumulative suspected child abuse” to the Department of Children and Families.  

“This confirms the consensus that Mr. Yeckring’s conduct, while inappropriate, reprehensible, and a violation of school policy, was not criminal,” the memorandum said. 

The memorandum ended by reiterating that it would not move forward with the recommended charges filed by the FDLE against Faulk, Rendek and Wright. 

Nick Anschultz is a Report for America corps member and writes about education for Mainstreet Daily News. This position is supported by local donations through the Community Catalyst for Local Journalism Fund at the Community Foundation of North Central Florida.