La Pine child sex abuse suspect’s former employer says she’s not welcome back if released, disputes attorney’s claim in court
Claire Elmer
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) — Former La Pine volleyball coach Sierra Stigall faces dozens of sex crime charges involving two alleged underage victims, and new questions have emerged over how a letter from a former employer was described in open court during a recent hearing on Monday.
Stigall is charged with a growing list of felony counts, including rape, sexual abuse, sodomy, and luring a minor. After Monday’s hearing, the case now includes a second alleged minor victim with accusations that encounters with one or both alleged victims potentially occurred through November of this year.
Stigall previously served as a seventh-grade volleyball coach at La Pine Middle School for a short season in the fall of 2024. Authorities say at least one alleged victim was someone she coached outside of her brief employment with the Bend-La Pine Schools. Court documents also indicate she later coached a youth baseball team in the La Pine area.
At the Monday hearing in Deschutes County Court, Stigall’s defense attorney told Judge Raymond Crutchley he had a letter from Stigall’s family that they said came from her former employer, a feed store in La Pine.
In court, the defense characterized the letter as describing Stigall as a good employee and indicating she would be able to return to work at the feed store if she were released from jail.
Judge Crutchley noted that Stigall had been employed and could likely be employed again, citing that among the factors he considered before ultimately reducing her bail from $500,000 to $100,000. The judge also imposed conditions including monitoring, surrender of her passport, and no contact with minors if Stigall were to post bail and be released.
Monday’s courtroom exchange was included in KTVZ’s earlier reporting on the case.
After that story aired, Kimball Pet and Farm Supply contacted KTVZ and posted on Facebook, saying the business had never stated that Stigall could return to work there. In response, KTVZ released the court video showing the statements made by the defense and the judge during the public hearing.
KTVZ’s Claire Elmer spoke with the feed store’s owner by phone on Tuesday morning to clarify details. The owner then provided KTVZ with a copy of the letter she says she gave for use in court, and its wording appears to differ from how it was described during the hearing.
Both the letter and the court recording have been shared with the Deschutes County District Attorney’s Office, which has confirmed receiving the materials but has not provided further public comment.
The owner of Kimball Pet and Farm Supply has been encouraged to contact prosecutors directly if she believes the letter was mischaracterized in court.
Even with the reduced bail amount, Stigall remains in custody as the case moves forward. KTVZ will continue to follow developments in both the criminal proceedings and the questions surrounding the feed store letter.