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The ongoing saga at Rockledge High School has taken another turn, as details emerge about recently terminated community coach Taylor Carter, who was terminated on October 28, 2024 prior to the firing of head coach Tyrone Giscombe. Both cases involve allegations of inappropriate and sexually charged behavior with students, yet the response and handling of the two cases by the district raise critical questions about transparency and accountability.
Brevard Public Schools originally released information to the press about Coach Giscombe being placed on leave during an investigation, however they released no information about Coach Carter who was already terminated for similar behavior. According to public records, the school board voted unanimously to approve Carter’s termination at the December 10, 2024 meeting.
Brevard Public Schools Human Resource Director Ryan Dufrain was caught being untruthful to us when he called to complain about a statement attributed to him in our original article about Coach Giscombe. We published that he stated the investigation was into inappropriate behavior with female students. His complaint to us was that he did not and would not say that, and that the investigation was about a DCF complaint not related to female students. He asked for us to correct the statement. What he did not know at the time was that we were in possession of his own internal emails stating exactly that. He went on to state that he is prohibited from commenting on personnel matters, then got angry when we revealed to him we had his exact statements in writing. In his anger he stated “you want a quote, here’s a quote, do you need to record it?” Then he went on to provide more information on a personnel matter after explicitly just stating he was prohibited from doing so.
The allegations made against both Giscombe and Carter by current and former students are extremely concerning. The students provided statements as well as screenshots of private social media (Instagram) messages from Coach Carter specifically. Coach Giscombe is alleged to have offered a child $300 in exchange for sex in his car and other sexual solicitation. According to the police report, no charges were filed because the victim decided not to press charges, but wanted authorities to be aware as she believed other students may be in danger of the same.
On December 28th, we spoke to Coach Carter and his wife via telephone. Carter stated that this was the first time he was hearing of these allegations about inappropriate behavior with students. However, on December 21st, Carter participated in an Twitter Spaces interview speaking directly about the allegations and the circumstances surrounding his termination in some detail. When we brought that up, he refreshed his memory and stated he only had joined to listen because he heard that people were talking about him on the program. Carter speaks himself for quite some time in the interview answering questions. Below is a screenshot of the Twitter Spaces showing him participating. You can listen to him yourself at about the 52 minute mark here: https://x.com/cityhopedealer/status/1870614840013955527
Much like when he spoke to us, Carter denied any knowledge of the allegations and denied ever sending inappropriate messages to students. However, the host of the Twitter Spaces, Martel Stevens told Carter that he knew he was lying to him because he had seen the messages himself which included sending a shirtless photo to a student. Carter did not dispute the allegations any further and stated if he were given the opportunity to coach kids again, he would try to be better. The police report states that the student provided the messages to law enforcement.
Carter then told us that whatever was stated about him on Twitter was false and those people were lying. We then revealed to him that we had several police reports naming him and the allegations against him. He stated he was unaware of any police investigation or reports. We provided them to him. You can read the reports in their entirety at the end of this article. After our phone conversation, he sent the following text messages to us.
Carters messages clearly conflict with what is stated by the investigating officer in the Rockledge Police reports. It is apparent from the Rockledge Police investigation that there’s an additional investigation into Coach Carter by BCSO. We are still awaiting copies of that investigation, however, if the investigation is still ongoing, we will not be able to obtain it.
After being fired from Rockledge High, we were informed that Carter attempted to get hired at both Satellite High and Holy Trinity but failed to do so. He would not comment when asked about that specifically, but according to his own comments, he is still trying to get another coaching job with children.
Regarding the specifics of the reason he was terminated, Carter told us he made a comment he shouldn’t have around students and he was reported and fired, but would not elaborate beyond that. However, on Twitter he went into more detail that while he was watching film around the baseball team in class, he joined in with the boys making comments about another female teacher. The comments were specifically about the female teacher’s body and what they would do to her according to another source. Carter owned up to making the statements and accepted his consequences.
It is believed by others that Carter “snitched” on Coach Giscombe after he was caught which is what lead to the investigation into Giscombe. Carter was fired on 10/28 and the first police report on Giscombe is dated 10/30. Carter stated in the Twitter Spaces that he would never snitch on another man in that matter which is also concerning given that he is a teacher and a mandatory reporter for any abuse of a child. What he effectively stated was that even with knowledge he wouldn’t “snitch.”
The disparity in how the district handled Carter and Giscombe’s cases has sparked frustration among parents and community members. Many are questioning why one coach faced public and administrative consequences while the other was quietly removed. Additionally, concerns about the district’s silence on Carter’s allegations and its potential impact on student safety persist.
Rockledge High parents were only provided with an email from the school’s principal with no information into the specifics of the allegations against Giscombe, and no information regarding Coach Carter was mentioned at all. This is extremely concerning given the nature of the allegations, the length of time of the alleged behavior, as well as the behavior involving female students directly related to the football program. As the victim who originally reached out is concerned, she believes other students may be or are in danger. However, without parents being provided the details or general idea, they have no knowledge to even inquire with their children who may have come into contact with these two individuals. Many, and we mean MANY, parents have reach out to us directly trying to get these answers which is why we perused this information so aggressively.
Even our own communications with the Brevard Public Schools Communications Director were met with little if any response at all. As always, we will continue to utilize our internal sources to obtain the information needed to inform the public and try to keep our community safe over any other agenda.
Rockledge High School has announced a stakeholder meeting to discuss the future of its football program, but many believe this is not enough. Calls for greater transparency and an independent review of both cases are growing. The contrasting responses to Carter and Giscombe underscore the need for consistent policies and clear communication when allegations of misconduct arise.
The Space Coast Rocket will continue to follow this story as more information becomes available. The police reports are below.
