A former assistant football coach for Liberty Public Schools is scheduled for trial in January on an assault charge related to an incident at one of the district’s high schools.

According to Liberty Municipal Court records, Miles R. Hochard will be tried Jan. 24.

Hochard was charged in a June 10 incident at Liberty North High School. The victim was a 17-year-old, a Liberty Police Department report said.

Hochard was employed with the Liberty Public Schools from Aug. 7, 2017, to June 30, 2019, district spokesman Dallas Ackerman said.

Hochard has since been hired as a coach and teacher with the Odessa School District.

Odessa School District Superintendent Jon Oetinger said the matter is currently under review.

The local television station KCTV5 previously reported on the case, saying a student accused Hochard of choking him.

Reached by phone Sunday, Hochard referred questions to his attorney. Attempts to reach the attorney were not immediately successful.

This story was originally published December 22, 2019 at 5:02 PM.

Katie Moore

The Kansas City Star

816-234-4312

Katie Moore was an enterprise and accountability reporter for The Star. She covered justice issues, including policing, prison conditions and the death penalty. She is a University of Kansas graduate and began her career as a reporter in 2015 in her hometown of Topeka, Kansas.