Roy “Stub” Lee Travis (OSAA photo)

A former Crane Union High School coach pleaded guilty Monday to four counts of sexual abuse and another of furnishing alcohol to a minor for abusing one of his players across three counties in 2022.

Roy “Stub” Lee Travis, 72, was originally charged with 21 counts of sexual abuse and two counts of furnishing alcohol to a minor in Deschutes County Circuit Court.

Travis’s April 2024 indictment accused him of inappropriately touching one of his girls basketball players both at home in Harney County and while the team was away. In addition to furnishing the player with alcohol, the particular sexual abuse charges Travis pleaded guilty to include touching the player’s lips, breasts, genitals and penetrating her with an object.

Crane Union High School is a boarding school near Burns in Harney County that serves a large geographic area. Three of the five incidents Travis pleaded guilty to took place in Deschutes County while two were in Umatilla County. All 21 of the alleged instances of sexual abuse took place in 2022.

The case was initially investigated by the Burns Police Department, which has jurisdiction over Crane Union High School, but it was later referred to the Oregon State Police, according to Deschutes County District Attorney Steve Gunnels. Ultimately, there was enough evidence against Travis in Deschutes County that charges were officially brought forward there in April 2024.

Travis ended his coaching career in 2023, when he resigned. He was the football coach for Crane Union for 30 years and he coached the girls basketball team for 28 seasons; eight seasons between 1995-2002 and another 20 from 2004-2023. 

Travis’ sentencing is scheduled for July 11. Second-degree sex abuse by a teacher or coach carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison. His attorney Angela Lee-Mandlin did not respond to The Bulletin’s request for comment.