Judge raises bail to $1M for CCSD teacher indicted on 46 child sex counts

Editor’s Note: Since the writing of this article, a judge on June 3 reduced Trinkle’s bail to $250,000.

A judge raised bail to $1 million for a special education teacher who was indicted this week on nearly 50 child sex charges.

Douglas Trinkle, of Boulder City, is accused of repeatedly fondling and raping a girl who was about 14 when the alleged abuse began in 2022.

According to the indictment, the assaults continued through March of this year.

Trinkle, 53, was arrested on March 12, and by the end of the month he had been released on $75,000 bail, along with other conditions such as electronic monitoring and the surrender of his passport, court records show.

At that time, he had been charged with only two felony counts: lewdness with a child and statutory sexual seduction. In an indictment secured Wednesday, he faces 46 counts, including sexual assault of a child under 16 and child abuse charges.

Prosecutors told Chief District Judge Jerry Wiese that Trinkle’s bail should be increased because of strong evidence in the case.

“There are significantly more charges than he faced earlier,” Deputy District Attorney Michael Allmon told the Las Vegas Review-Journal on Thursday. “So, the increase in bail was appropriate.”

Prosecutors also have DNA evidence now, Allmon added. He said the victim had been impregnated as a result of the abuse and had an abortion.

The judge ordered that Trinkle’s bail be set at $1 million and reiterated the release conditions previously set by a Boulder City judge.

Trinkle’s attorney, Joel Mann, filed a motion to rescind the increase Thursday, arguing it was improperly imposed.

In the filing, Mann said that because Trinkle’s original bail was exonerated rather than transferred to the trial court, his family, who posted a percentage of the bail to a bondsman, had to forfeit $11,250.

The defense attorney also took issue with the fact that he was not notified about the hearing at which the judge increased Trinkle’s bond, leaving him unable to present his own arguments.

“Mr. Trinkle is not a danger to the community as he has never been in trouble before and has been a productive and good citizen before these accusations,” Mann stated in the document. “Mr. Trinkle should be afforded a reasonable bail based on his lack of significant criminal history and his significant ties to his community.”

Nevada Department of Education records show that Trinkle has worked for the Clark County School District since 2012, mostly as a special education instructor. Trinkle began working as a teacher at Cimarron-Memorial in the 2023-24 school year, records show.

School officials previously said that he was not allowed on the high school’s campus. Asked for an update on Trinkle’s employment status with the district, a CCSD spokesperson said in an email Thursday that Trinkle “is not currently in active status with the District” but did not elaborate.

In a March statement, Boulder City Police Chief Timothy Shea said the incident was not connected with the suspect’s employment.

Contact Akiya Dillon at adillon@reviewjournal.com.