Utah conference responds to arrest of former coach charged with child sex crimes

WEST VALLEY CITY — More information is emerging about a former Utah youth football coach, now in jail on charges of child sex charges.

Before the latest charges, he had a lengthy criminal history and passed a background check to be able to coach. The league he coached for is now responding.

Ute Conference Football is now saying it knew about his prior criminal history, and despite what it says about its requirements posted on the Little League website, the conference said he was good to coach. But the organization did remove him mid-season once it learned of the sexual allegations that landed him in jail.

The coaching badge and other photos posted on 48-year-old Jeffrey Alsop's public Facebook page show he coached part of the season in Murray for the Ute Conference, Utah youth football league.

Last week, officers with the West Valley City Police Department arrested Alsop on charges of sexually abusing a teenage girl over the last three years at multiple locations, including at his home and his work in Murray. Prosecutors have charged him with 18 felonies of forcible sex abuse.

"We absolutely think he's an ongoing risk, and that's why we asked for a no-bail hold," Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill said.

Learning about the allegations, the Ute Conference removed Alsop as coach, but before then he also had a lengthy criminal history with drugs, a car break-in, joyriding, and attempted possession of forged writing/device, among other felonies and misdemeanors from 1995 to 2005. Some charges were dismissed, but others he pleaded guilty to, like illegal possession of a controlled substance in 1999.

Ute Conference executive director Jeff Gorringe told KSL-TV Alsop passed the background check, even though one of the Ute Conference policies to disqualify a coach reads: "If I have any conviction (including a guilty plea or plea in abeyance or a plea of nolo contendere) for drug or alcohol related offenses (excluding class B or C DUI convictions), irrespective of the date or whether the conviction was for a felony or misdemeanor."

When the director was asked about Alsop's charges, Gorringe said, "The charges go back over 10 years," "We give people second chances," and "Our attorney says we did everything perfectly."

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