ELLSWORTH – A man who used to teach, coach and sit on the school board in Bucksport is scheduled to go on trial on multiple sex charges March 18 in Hancock County Superior Court.

Travis White, 31, faces 10 charges of gross sexual assault, one charge of attempted gross sexual assault, one charge of unlawful sexual contact, two charges of sexual abuse of a minor, and three charges of endangering the welfare of a child, according to court documents.

The charges stem from incidents alleged to have taken place as far back as 1990 involving four males, all of whom were juveniles when the incidents allegedly occurred.

Don Brown, White’s Bangor lawyer, said Thursday that the charges are false and stem from a civil suit filed in Superior Court against White by one of the alleged victims. The alleged victims have made up the claims against his client because they are “looking for money,” Brown said.

“That’s what is driving this whole case,” Brown said. According to the civil suit, the alleged victim was 8 years old and White 17 in 1987 when the first incident between the two was reported to have taken place. The civil suit asks for unspecified damages, costs and “other such relief.”

Seven of the criminal rape charges against White and the only charge of attempted rape stem from accusations by the alleged victim in the civil suit, who is now 22, according to court documents.

Brown said the court’s decision to try White on all the charges all at once could be detrimental to his client’s case.

“The danger of unfair prejudice is huge,” Brown said. “I certainly believe he should be [acquitted] and [am] hopeful that he will be.”

Mary Kellett, assistant district attorney, said Thursday she does not want to say much about the case before the trial. She said that it could be difficult to find jurors for sex cases because many people have been victims of sex offenses or have been accused of committing them.

Kellett said the number of victims in the case counter Brown’s argument that the charges against White are motivated by the one civil suit.

“There are four cases and four separate victims,” Kellett said.

White, a former basketball coach in Bucksport, is accused of providing alcohol to the boys.

The most recent incident reportedly occurred Feb. 4, 2001, according to an affidavit filed in Superior Court. The affidavit, filed by Hancock County Sheriff’s Deputy Tim Cote, alleges that White sexually molested one of two 14-year-old boys that night when they stayed at his home on Toddy Pond in Penobscot.

White and the boys stayed up until 3 a.m. playing with a computer and watching television, Cote wrote in the affidavit. One of the boys told his mother he woke up with White’s hands on his genitalia, according to the affidavit.

White was indicted in August on 10 counts of gross sexual assault and two counts of sexual abuse of a minor. He was jailed after he allegedly violated his bail conditions by having contact with someone under the age of 18, according to court documents. Since being bailed out of jail Aug. 21 on $1,000 cash, White has been living with his family in Bucksport, Brown said.