Despite a felony conviction and drug selling charges, the school district hired him.
May 9, 2008 - Hernando High School coach Eric A. Riggins, 37, under investigation for possible inappropriate contact with female students, has resigned.
Riggins was arrested in 1998 on a charge of burglary with assault. He was accused of forcing his way into a girlfriend's home and threatening to kill her, court documents show.The St. Petersburg Times also reported that in 2006, the Florida Department of Education moved to deny his application for a coaching certificate, but a state panel later reversed that recommendation and gave him a provisional certificate along with a reprimand and $250 fine.
He eventually pleaded no contest to the lesser charge of aggravated assault, a third-degree felony, and was sentenced to probation with adjudication withheld.
He was also arrested in 2000 on charges of trying to sell marijuana to an undercover police officer, but the State's Attorney's Office declined to prosecute due to a problem with a witness.
Despite that record, the school district hired Riggins in 2003 as an aide at the alternative school.
He later coached at Nature Coast Technical High School.
Riggins had been suspended with pay last month.
