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Update: Iowa teacher accused of inappropriate contact turns himself in

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May 20th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

TREYNOR, Iowa (AP) — A western Iowa elementary school teacher faces felony charges in connection to alleged inappropriate contact with former high school students. The Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office told The Daily NonPareil 44-year-old Michael Douglas Travis turned himself in to authorities Tuesday morning after a warrant was issued for his arrest as a result of an investigation led by the Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office that alleged Travis had inappropriately touched two softball players during separate incidents in 2002 and 2006. He was released a short time later on pretrial supervision.

Travis faces two counts of sexual exploitation by a school employee. A preliminary hearing is scheduled at 9:30 a.m. on June 10. If convicted, Travis faces a maximum of 10 years in prison for each charge.Travis is a fifth-grade teacher at Treynor Elementary School and an assistant softball coach at Treynor High School. He was placed on paid administrative leave in April.

Pottawattamie County Sheriff Jeff Danker says it has identified three women that may be victims of inappropriate contact from Travis. They are pressing charges on behalf of two women, since one of the cases no longer falls under the Statute of Limitations.