Centre County jury convicts former Woodward Camp coach of groping teenage gymnast

A former Woodward Camp gymnastics coach was convicted Friday of groping a gymnast during a 2019 drill at the one of the top training grounds in the country.

Nathaniel L. Singer, 27, of New England, was found guilty of two felony counts of aggravated indecent assault and two misdemeanor counts of indecent assault after a two-day trial. The jury of seven women and five men deliberated for about seven hours.

Singer, sitting next to defense lawyer Lance Marshall, had no visible reaction when the verdict was read. The 17-year-old who accused him cried briefly and hugged her mother.

It was not immediately known if Marshall plans to file an appeal. Attorney David Inscho — who represents the teen’s family in a federal lawsuit against the facility, Singer and others — said she was “thrilled” with the verdict.

“Too many times victims of abuse have had their experiences denied and disbelieved. We are appreciative of the jury for taking the time to carefully consider all of the evidence and for believing the victim in this case,” Centre County Assistant District Attorney Crystal Hundt wrote in a statement. “We hope that the strength and courage of this victim encourages others to come forward and tell their stories. The safety of our community’s children is our priority.”

Centre County prosecutors cast Singer — convicted of digitally penetrating the teenager while spotting her during a drill — as deliberate and calculated in his pursuit of her.

“He chose his victim to be young, to be naive, to be someone who submits to authority — someone over who he has authority,” Centre County Assistant District Attorney Joshua Andrews said in his closing argument. “He planned his approach to be discreet and he picked a moment when (the child) was just instructed to let him coach her to assault her. He calculated all of this to maximize his chances of being able to get away it, maybe even to do it again.”

The teen from a suburb of Chicago disclosed the assault in January 2021. Her mother testified Thursday that her daughter seemed “broken,” while a close friend testified she seemed “rattled.”

She’s no longer a gymnast, which she testified Thursday was once “all I wanted to do.” She’s turned to competitive cheerleading and hopes to attend Clemson University to pursue a degree in business or construction management.

“She didn’t have real-world experience. She didn’t have a social life. She didn’t have friends outside of gymnastics. She had school, gymnastics and sleep. Gymnastics was everything to her,” Andrews said. “She gave everything to that sport and she went to Camp Woodward to continue to do that. She wanted to continue to work on her skills. Even her vacations were gymnastics, just in a different place.”

Singer, who last coached at the camp in 2020, offered a wholesale denial of the allegations Friday. He testified he “never” digitally penetrated her.

His lawyer argued there was not enough evidence to convict him and questioned the veracity of the teen’s allegations. He also said the family’s pending federal lawsuit gave them a motive to testify.

“The fact that the jury believed her only further empowers people who have been similarly victimized to be able to come forward. The defense attempted to portray the victim in this case as being dishonest; those attempts failed,” Inscho said. “They attempted to blame her for what had happened rather than take responsibility. When the jury finds for a victim it not only empowers them by believing them, but it encourages other victims of child sexual abuse to come forward. That’s what makes this an important verdict for the community.”

Singer was ruled ineligible to be a member of USA Gymnastics by the U.S. Center for SafeSport — a center tasked with investigating sex-abuse claims in Olympic sports — for sexual misconduct.

He remains free on $50,000 unsecured bail. Sentencing is scheduled for April 24.