Goliad High School Varsity Cheerleader Accused of Pinning Student Between Cars, Punished With Only ISS as Victim Alleges Knee Injury

A Goliad High School parking lot incident has prompted widespread community debate after a varsity cheerleader, who also holds the title of Miss Goliad, was accused of pinning a fellow student between two vehicles, resulting in injury.

The victim’s family says the school district failed to take the situation seriously, issuing only a three-day in-school suspension (ISS) to the student responsible.

According to multiple accounts shared publicly, the incident occurred as student Trinity Popps was loading her belongings into a vehicle after school.

Witnesses claim another student, also a member of the Goliad High School varsity cheer team, pulled her vehicle forward and allegedly pinned Popps between the two cars while bystanders shouted for her to stop.

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The driver then reportedly “drove off laughing,” a claim repeated in several online discussions.

Popps says her knee was injured when the vehicle pressed her legs between the bumpers, later stating that her patella had shifted and bruising developed.

Despite this, she says her first instinct was to seek out her cheer coach to report the situation, before eventually bringing her concerns to Principal Charles Henke and Superintendent Holly Lyon.

According to the Popps family, administrators assigned the student driver three days of ISS and required her to write an apology letter addressed to “Miss Goliad Court,” the group for which the accused student currently holds a title.

Popps says she felt dismissed during conversations with administrators, claiming they told her they would “believe her more” if she had recorded the incident or immediately called emergency services.

She says her hesitation to call 911 stemmed from a long history of medical trauma and hospital experiences.

Her parents, Bobby and Linda Popps, soon escalated the matter, filing a grievance with the Goliad Independent School District.

The grievance advanced to level three before being rejected by the school board, a decision the family says demonstrates a failure of leadership and disregard for student safety.

Linda Popps says she intends to continue filing grievances and may request the Texas Education Agency (TEA) to intervene and review how the district handled the incident.

Bobby Popps publicly stated he would like to see both the superintendent and principal relieved of their duties.

The situation erupted into a heated discussion on Facebook, where residents voiced divided opinions.

Stephanie Liendo, a graduate of Victoria College, acknowledged the seriousness of the incident but urged the community to avoid escalating tensions. She wrote,

Liendo also noted the accused student’s extensive list of accomplishments, including serving as Miss Goliad, mentoring youth cheer squads, participating in state pageants, performing in the Disney parade multiple times, and creating a local mentorship program known as The Big Sister Project.

Comenter Emili Boniface pushed back strongly, writing,

Another resident, Patricia Belcher, noted that the victim’s family had already spoken publicly about the incident on local television, saying,

Others shared practical advice. Joe Valderrama commented,

Some residents defended the Popps family’s frustration, including Rose Camacho, who wrote,

But Liendo maintained her position, expressing concern over what she sees as a rush to public judgment.

As of now, Goliad ISD has not publicly addressed the grievances or the community controversy surrounding the incident.

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