Former high school basketball coach accused of having sex with minor expected in court

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A former Englewood High School basketball coach is set to make his first appearance at Duval County Courthouse Monday for sex crimes involving a minor.

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Paul McPherson has been charged with multiple felonies and is accused of having sex with a minor. His arrest marks the sixth Duval County Public School employee to be arrested this year.

Action News Jax also now has some information on how this case was put together. According to an Action News Jax source, a lot of it was DNA evidence and through online messages after the victim came forward.

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Now McPherson, a former boys basketball coach at Englewood High School, security guard and former NBA player, is in jail, facing five felony charges, including unlawful sexual activity with a minor.

McPherson’s mugshot was released Friday morning.

An unredacted report Action News Jax received from a source said the victim was a 16-year-old girl. The unredacted source report said the two engaged in sexual activity on more than one occasion and smoked together. At one point, the victim told Englewood staff about it, adding she saw the 45-year-old possibly taking a photo or video of her during their sexual encounters.

The grandmother of Gail Jackson, who is another student at Englewood High School, told Action News Jax she was unaware of the charges until Action News Jax told her.

“I think it’s deplorable if he’s guilty,” she said. “If it’s true, I think it’s deplorable because that’s a position of trust, and that would be really sad to hear.”

Read: New details in arrest of former DCPS boys basketball coach accused of having sex with a minor

In a message to families, the school said McPherson was reassigned from the school to district duties with no student contact on Sept. 5 this year following the initial allegations.

McPherson is set to face a judge for the first time Friday at 9 a.m.

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