11/21/24
July 28, 2005
Update to "He wanted to win.": T-ball coach to be tried for paying player $25 to injure mentally disabled player to keep him out of game. Coach charged with two counts of criminal solicitation to commit aggravated assault and one count each of corruption of minors, criminal conspiracy and recklessly endangering another person. See prior discussion.
posted by graymatters to culture at 05:03 PM - 20 comments
I hope this guy gets his head snapped, and from looking at the way his neck fills that shirt, even one of his 8 year old players should be able to manage that. Something really creepy is how remarkably similar he looks to this guy.
posted by Texan_lost_in_NY at 05:41 PM on July 28, 2005
"So I went out and hit him in the ear," Reese said. I think the Yanks could use a kid with that sort of control, eh? And anyhow, I was sure you were going to reference this fellow. 
posted by wfrazerjr at 06:11 PM on July 28, 2005
What is this, "If he is convicted" crap? You mean he might be able to coach if he is found innocent? People who are that sick should be hung. There is no place in society for people like that.
posted by dbt302 at 07:01 PM on July 28, 2005
won't be allowed to coach again if he is convicted of criminal charges Hey, this kind of attitude comes from the top down.
posted by Amateur at 07:42 PM on July 28, 2005
Amateur...good call with the bush article.
posted by rockin_the_suburbs at 07:49 PM on July 28, 2005
There's a line in the Steve Martin Sgt Bilko film: 'An indictment is NOT a conviction. Damn straight!' I thought it was funny, but I guess some people don't get it.
posted by owlhouse at 08:20 PM on July 28, 2005
John Chaney's coaching T-Ball now?
posted by sellout at 03:05 AM on July 29, 2005
I don't have kids, so maybe my knees don't jerk so fast here, but if he's not convicted, does that not mean he's innocent? And if he's innocent, why shouldn't he be allowed to coach? It's a radical approach to the criminal justice system I'll grant you, but it's so crazy, it just might work.
posted by JJ at 05:34 AM on July 29, 2005
Oh yeah, and umm, ban cyz9094890? Without wanting to contradict myself, let's just skip the trial and end him.
posted by JJ at 05:35 AM on July 29, 2005
Yeah, bannination without hesitation. No need for consultation with the SpoFi nation.
posted by squealy at 06:05 AM on July 29, 2005
if he's not convicted, does that not mean he's innocent? And if he's innocent, why shouldn't he be allowed to coach? JJ, I'm confused, are you talking about Karl Rove or Mark R. Downs Jr.? But on a more serious note ... you are right in the sense that Downs may actually be innocent. We should not assume, based on an AP news story, that we have all the facts. However, I still don't think that his status as a coach should hinge on a criminal conviction. It just might turn out that it is not a crime, under the laws of Pennsylvania, to bribe an eight-year-old to throw a baseball at another eight-year-old. However, I think we can all agree that it is an act of extremely poor sportsmanship, and not the kind of behaviour that a coach should engage in. If he did it -- regardless of whether it is a criminal offense or not -- he should not be allowed to coach again.
posted by Amateur at 06:46 AM on July 29, 2005
If he is not convicted, then that merely means that there was not enough evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that he committed a crime. That does not mean that he is innocent & did not do. See O.J. Simpson. The fact that he admitted it to the father of the bribed child should be proof enough for the little league that he engaged in some really inappropriate behavior.
posted by bperk at 08:05 AM on July 29, 2005
Oh come on, he's not going to coach again. This isn't Texas.
posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 08:15 AM on July 29, 2005
I'm not saying he should, or he will, simply that if it all turned out to be some nonsense invented by some kid's parent with a weird chip on his shoulder, it would be a bit rough on the guy if he got banned from coaching for being accused of something (regardless of whether he did it or not). It's trial by media. Look at that nice fellow Michael Jackson - a court found him innocent, but I still can't help thinking of him hanging around bouncy castles and yelling "higher!"
posted by JJ at 08:40 AM on July 29, 2005
JJ innocent and not guilty are two completely different things. And besides I thought those kids wore helmets all the time like me.
posted by seansterps at 09:10 AM on July 29, 2005
What really bothers me, is the fact that they would even consider letting him coach again, innocent or not. Just to have an alegation like this, and given the kids age(4-5) , what would they do with a school teacher? This is not a full time job position like a teacher, but a volunteer. If he is innocent would you let your kid play on his team next year? Am I the only one who thinks this is incredulous?
posted by volfire at 09:13 AM on July 29, 2005
"The only thing dumber than the helmet is the helmet law, the point of which is to protect a brain that is functioning so poorly, it's not even trying to stop the cracking of the head that it's in."
posted by JJ at 09:48 AM on July 29, 2005
if it all turned out to be some nonsense invented by some kid's parent It could be. The kid might have decided that he was going to knock his teammate out of the game all on his own, then later come up with the idea of blaming his coach, and his dad might just be backing him up; or the dad might have come up with the lie to protect his own kid. JJ's right, the accusation by itself is not enough to warrant punishment. But on the other hand, JJ's wrong, the "burden of proof" shouldn't be the same as for a criminal trial. In my opinion.
posted by Amateur at 12:30 PM on July 29, 2005
Am I the only one who thinks this is incredulous? Probably.
posted by lil_brown_bat at 04:37 PM on July 29, 2005
Perhaps the most interesting part of the news story is: "League organizers have said Downs won't be allowed to coach again if he is convicted of criminal charges." If he is convicted? He admitted it to the father of the kid who was paid!