Toth Presser Urges for thorough MCSO Investigation into Former Woodlands High Wrestling Coach in Alleged Grooming Case

THE WOODLANDS, TX -- In a stunning press conference this past Tuesday at the The Woodlands office of Texas State Representative Steve Toth, District 15, he presented allegations against former Woodlands High School wrestling coach William ‘Billy’ Durning, who allegedly had been grooming high school female athletes he coached, for school districts in which he taught at for over a decade. According to reports, Durning has been teaching publicly since 2007 in and around the Houston region, and young wrestlers, particularly females, have allegedly been reporting grooming attempts for many years, some reports dating allegedly back to 2012.

Rep. Toth in his initial statement called for a thorough, independent investigation into allegations against coach Durning, urging the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office to lead a probe in reaction to a recent opinion by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. Toth invited several Woodlands High Schools fathers, whose daughters allegedly reported grooming attempts by Durning, while multiple current alleged victims, including several former students, now adults, and their supporters were in attendance.

Subject matter expert, therapist, and licensed professional counselor, Rebecca Smith, MA LPC-S, described an example of a grooming pattern including escalation to that of sexualized conduct, including Bondage and Discipline, Dominance and Submission, and Sadism and Masochism, more commonly known as BDSM, sexual acts, videotaping of victims, and cross-district abuse over several years. Smith outlined several scenarios to watch out for in which predators ‘love bomb,’ or create an atmosphere that draws away influence from a child’s parents, while at the same time projecting an unencumbered feeling of closeness that victims take as an intimate friend, and further feel that they can love them. Additionally, predators will also create a bonding situation designed to create a trauma bond in the mind of a child, with bringing up matters of a sexual nature, causing confusing thoughts and indecision for the child in asking for help.

“The pattern moves from persistent attention to trust-building to increasingly personal conversations, to comparisons of teammates' bodies, to comments about weight and appearance, to boundary testing,” said licensed professional counselor, Rebecca Smith. “Ultimately it leads to explicit discussions involving sex, BDSM, domination, submission, and sexual preferences and sexual boundaries. When viewed chronologically, the progression is quite alarming.”

Durning started teaching at The Woodlands High School, Conroe Independent School District (CISD) in 2025, but it was not until late April 2026, that a wrestling student of Durning’s posted on social messages between herself and the coach, which had been described as grooming. CISD confirmed coach Durning’s employment ended when he resigned on May 6th. In addition to Conroe ISD, Durning is also reported to have taught at Houston, Cypress-Fairbanks, and Katy ISDs. One terrible aspect of the years of alleged troubling abuse were colleagues of Mr. Durning who knew the coach's behavior and did not inform the appropriate authorities, or from some alleged reports of the brave few who did, and faced blowback from officials.

“Everyone is entitled to, ‘The Presumption of Innocence,’ including Mr. Durning,” said State Representative District 15, Steve Toth. “And an investigation is how we find the truth. But the allegations are serious enough that the public deserves a thorough investigation, one that is not limited to one district alone but can include the pieces of a larger puzzle.”

Rep. Toth invited several fathers of the Woodlands High victims allegedly groomed by Mr. Durning, to speak, John Guydon and Charlie Strange. They equally condemned the actions of the alleged groomer, as well as the slow pace of the investigation.

“I was proud of my daughter when she created an Instagram post and put it out to the world that this man (Durning) was attempting to groom her,” said Charlie Strange, father of a Woodlands High School wrestler. “Because of her, many more girls have come forward with harrowing stories of their own.”

For both fathers, or any parent of a student athlete, the actions of an alleged groomer in the midst of their daughters school is equally horrifying, and any mother or father that relies on the scales of justice, as slow as it moves, should be commended for their patience. And for experienced groomers, those who have had many conquests over numerous years, they have high confidence levels, until that one student has had enough to finally make a stand, causing a crack in the dam with an almost immediate failure in its front.

“Over the last 11 years or so, either my wife or I have been at every practice, every lesson, every game, even out-of-state tournaments,” said John Guydon, whose daughter is a Woodlands High student athlete. “We were right there, and we still didn't see it for what it was. Because that's how grooming works. It happens in plain sight.”

The alleged modus operandi of coach Durning was to groom the girls during their training days as minor females on school grounds, gaining their trust and personal attachment to him as a supportive coach and mentor, while Durning was allegedly counting down the days until a girl turns of age, of which those who were groomed further alleged reporting they were ‘18 and graduated.’ Alleged victims of Durning would then describe in graphic detail how the coach would pursue them with sexual intent as adults.

It’s unclear if students in Conroe ISD who were allegedly groomed by Durning engaged in sexual acts with him, but there are formers students of the coach, now in their 20s and early 30s, who allegedly reported sexual acts with Durning at his residence as adults. One grooming victim further alleged that she accidentally opened a closet at Durning’s house (approximately 2020-2021 timeframe), containing over a hundred(s) tapes, and noted that when filmed by the coach he would allegedly ask questions of the females prior to their encounters, particularly asking their age.

Rep. Toth during the press conference noted Penal Code Section § 15.032, which took effect three years ago, and “Makes it a felony to persuade, induce, entice or coerce a child, or attempt to, with the intent that a sexual offense be committed.” The Penal Code Section on child grooming cites that ‘physical contact’ is not required, and is designed to disrupt the timeline of predators, some whose efforts can take multiple years in their targeted aims. Toth also cited Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s recent opinion (KP-0528) of September 16th, that provided clarification on the intent of Senate Bill 571 from 2025, “A school district police department is not an ‘appropriate law enforcement agency’ to investigate allegations of sexual abuse and exploitation, including allegations of child grooming.”

The TEA Inspector General enforces SB 571, which prevents predators from quietly moving between school districts, but the limitations of the IG’s office is vastly administrative and lacks a criminal investigative arm. The alleged evidence concerning Mr. Durning is a good case to judge the effectiveness of SB 571, and its legal framework and jurisdiction, with future tweak possibilities in 2027. And with multiple ISDs and county law enforcement investigative agencies involved, in addition to the contact crossover from minor to adult in regards to the victims; many questions will have to be answered before the case is adjudicated. There is a suggestion that a state taskforce may have to be considered for future cases involving many jurisdictions and agencies.

One person wishing to remain anonymous opined a plausible situation that may be a sticking point to any investigation into the alleged actions of the coach, that while “15.032 does apply to minors, the alleged sexual congress between Mr. Durning and his grooming victims occurred between consenting adults.”

It was also noted by Toth’s office that the alleged relationships “leading to the sexual encounters included years of communications with coach Durning involved late night calls and texts not related to school or sports, several encrypted apps, comments that were sexual in nature – crossing the boundaries of a proper teacher/coach – student relationship.”

Upon learning of the allegations of coach Durning on April 27th, CISD immediately placed him on administrative leave, and his alleged actions were reported to Child Protective Services, the Texas Education Agency (TEA), and the State Board for Educator Certification (SBEC). CISD’s Police Department began their investigation, plus notified the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office as required by law, prior to the Texas AG’s KP-0528 opinion.

“Conroe ISD Police detectives investigated the allegations, and the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office reviewed the case,” said Andrew Stewart, CISD Executive Director of Communications. “After a thorough investigation of the allegations, no chargeable offense was found to have occurred.”

CISD PD submitted their case finding to the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office, and was assigned to the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office detectives, and remains under investigation. Stewart lauded the Conroe ISD Police Department for their prompt actions and noted that the protection of students remains the district’s number one priority, as well as the valued partnerships with local law enforcement agencies and the DA’s Office.

Conroe ISD’s hiring process includes fingerprint-based criminal history checks, a review of the Texas Education Agency’s ‘Do Not Hire Registry,’ and verification of certification and disciplinary history. In addition a required pre-employment affidavit, and a review of employment history and references.

“The district seeks relevant information from previous employers,” said Andrew Stewart. “But evaluations and personnel records are not automatically transferred, and their release is subject to applicable law.”

Stewart also went on to say that school districts also have legal responsibilities to report certain allegations of misconduct to the appropriate state agencies.

“These safeguards can identify concerns that have been reported, documented, investigated, or entered into official systems,” said Stewart, “However, no hiring process can identify conduct that was never reported, documented, or disclosed by previous employers.”

State-wide, the TEAs Inspector General for Educator Misconduct, has taken more than 590 disciplinary actions and placed more than 480 educators on their exclude from consideration database, which are administrative concerns on behalf of the agency, and do not necessarily reflect criminal actions. Typically, the TEA receives approximately 16,000 reports of misconduct yearly, and reports of a sexual nature account for approximately one in five cases.

Rep. Toth was adamant about the systemic context to the issue, in which school districts ‘Pass the trash’ which describes the troubling history of alleged educators being allowed to resign, then be hired elsewhere to continue their bad actions. Texas has strengthened its laws to prevent this with SB 571, but problems still persist.

The Montgomery County Sheriff's Office’s awareness of the allegations regarding coach Durning, extended from day one in April 2026, then on September 23rd, the Conroe ISD Police Department and CISD Superintendent requested an independent investigation into these allegations by the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office.

“The request was initiated following a determination rendered by the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) regarding the primary investigative authority for child abuse allegations governed under Chapter 261 of the Texas Family Code,” said Miranda Hahs, Montgomery County Public Affairs, Public Affairs Director. “The OAG determined that Conroe ISD Police Department lacked primary jurisdiction to investigate the matter under the specific statutory parameters of Chapter 261.”

Ms. Hahs also noted that pursuant to the provisions established under SB 571, the MCSO’s Major Crimes Unit accepted the case and is actively reviewing all existing evidence, files, and initial documentation. MCSO investigators are committed to conducting a thorough, independent, and objective examination of all facts surrounding the allegations.

The Sheriff's Office shares the concerns expressed by Representative Toth’s press conference, and Ms. Hahs expressed that the MCSO had initiated active investigative measures prior to Tuesday's press conference.

"Our primary responsibility is the safety of our community and ensuring that all investigations are conducted with complete integrity, strict adherence to the law, and total impartiality," said Montgomery County Sheriff Wesley Doolittle. "Our Major Crimes Unit will ensure every aspect of this case is thoroughly evaluated, and any appropriate action under Texas law will be taken, we will ensure justice is served."

The Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office, as a matter of practice, does not comment on cases under investigation.

Anyone possessing additional information relevant to this case is encouraged to contact the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office Major Crimes Division at 936-538-5900 and reference case # 26A327737.