Ex-Palo Verde coach pleads not guilty to charges of sexual assault against a child

A former Palo Verde High School coach accused of sexually assaulting a child entered a not guilty plea on Monday.

Police arrested Michael “Luke” Atwell, 72, at the school on Nov. 19. The charges he faces include six counts of sexual assault against a child under 14 and two counts of lewdness with a child under 14.

Atwell has posted his $50,000 bail, with conditions of high-level electronic monitoring and no contact with minors, but appeared at court in jail custody. Justice of the Peace Diana Sullivan said Atwell couldn’t be placed on monitoring at his home because of his proximity to the alleged victim, a neighbor.

Chief Deputy District Attorney Peter Thunell told her the victim has moved.

Defense attorney Jess Marchese said Atwell has no criminal record and, as far as he knows, previously had no issues in his volunteer work at church and the school.

In a message to Palo Verde families last week, Principal Lisa Schumacher did not name Atwell, but said a volunteer coach was arrested on charges that did not appear to be related to their role at the school. “The coach has been terminated and will not be allowed on campus,” she said in the statement, which Clark County School District officials released in response to a request for comment.

Atwell previously taught history, criminal justice and social studies and coached boys cross country and girls softball at Palo Verde, according to state records and Las Vegas Review-Journal archives. His teaching license expired in 2015.

‘He thought nobody would believe him’

According to the Metropolitan Police Department arrest report, the allegations against Atwell involve a boy who is a student at Palo Verde.

The victim told police that Atwell sexually abused him when he was between 11 and 14-years-old. Atwell became close to the victim’s family, according to the report, and developed a relationship with the victim, who saw Atwell as someone he could talk to about his problems.

Eventually, Atwell began sexually abusing the victim at Atwell’s house, police said the victim told them.

“(The victim) stated he did not say anything because he thought nobody would believe him or people would think he was gay,” according to the report.

A sibling told Metro he would get angry and cry at night, but would say he was angry because he was having a hard time at school.

Atwell told police he’d “raised” the victim for a few years, according to police. He denied the allegations and insisted he was not gay, Metro said.

When a detective asked if he’d take a lie detector test, he said he wanted his lawyer present. He denied having sex toys at his house, but police found one in a guest bedroom when they searched the residence, the report said.

Other allegations

People interviewed by police indicated that it wasn’t the first time Atwell has been accused of sexual misconduct.

The victim’s mother said Atwell is a building manager at Cornerstone Church, according to Metro, but was no longer supposed to be on campus. She also said Atwell “would make fun of gay people in public,” the report said.

A sibling of the victim told police that Atwell recently resigned and was not allowed to be on church property, but would still show up. The sibling attributed his resignation to other allegations: asking an underage girl about her sex life and taping a pair of underwear he’d found to an office door, according to Metro.

Cornerstone did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

A sibling of the victim also told police Atwell was an assistant coach for junior varsity softball. The sibling said Atwell would make “weird comments” and ask for the sibling’s friends to come over and use his Jacuzzi, according to the report.

Another person, who lived with Atwell when she was 18 and had a falling out with her family, told police he would walk in on her while she was showering, make sexual jokes around her and smack her buttocks, according to the report. She said he would sometimes be naked in his hot tub when she came home and invite her to get in.

He had been a cross country coach, she told police, but wasn’t allowed to continue in that role and switched to softball “after a student complained of a sexual allegation.”

Military career

Atwell enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1971, according to a 2010 article about him. He flew as a crew chief during the Vietnam War, then transferred to the Air Force and served until 1997, when he retired as a lieutenant colonel.

Atwell was also chief of protocol at Nellis Air Force Base and a combat commander in Desert Storm, the article said. He received a Bronze Star for actions in that conflict.

“My military background has taught me many things, primarily to have integrity above all else and to appreciate and contribute to the community,” Atwell said in 2010. “These are the things I try and teach my Summerlin students every day.”

Contact Noble Brigham at nbrigham@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BrighamNoble on X.