Posted on 07/19/2005 5:46:55 PM PDT by FlJoePa
Key parts of baseball incident in dispute Youth league leader says accounts differ Tuesday, July 19, 2005 By Michael A. Fuoco, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette The president of a Fayette County youth baseball league yesterday disputed some of the allegations surrounding the arrest of a coach last week on criminal charges of offering to pay a player to hurt a teammate who has autism. Annie O'Neill, Post-Gazette Eric Forsythe is president of the R.W. Clark Youth Baseball League in North Union Township. Click photo for larger image. Previous coverage Tee-ball coach charged in assault (7/16/05)
(Excerpt) Read more at post-gazette.com ...
...This is what, I was afraid of...makings of a lawsuit against the Youth Baseball League, What next? ...the Boy Scouts.
I help run our local Little League and you wouldn't believe the hoops we have to jump through for liability issues. It's not just injuries we're concerned with now, but background checks on ALL volunteers that come anywhere near the kids . . . .
What I'm getting out of this is that the league couldn't find a violation, but the District Attorney's investigators found probable cause to press charges against the coach. So who's opinion should we put more trust in?
I think the coach is probably still a scumbag, and the league doesn't want to get sued for his activities. Just my opinion based on the current account.
Yes, it looks like there is a real dispute as to whether it was $5 or $25 which was offered. The numbers may have gotten confused because he had in an earlier game offered $25 to take out an umpire.
That said, I agree with Willie. There's something that isn't right about this story. Every t-ball league I've ever seen doesn't even keep score. I can't see how being overly competitive would matter in a league where there aren't winners or losers.
But that said, I don't see this article as necessarily disproving the charges.
And skink, you left out the most interesting part of your quote:
If the kid couldn't play (worth a damn) and IF he was disrupting/disruptive (does the kid understand, the games' rules?) the training and coaching of the team, one could see why this "really stupid event" occurred...the parents should not be using the game as a cause for a lawsuit...flame away, if you must..JMO
I wouldn't be proud of these remarks, but you seem to be.
that said, It looks like the Youth League officials may be forced to spend scant $$$$/resources to protect itself/themselves.
I know, my Dad, was a Girls' Softball Coach.
IMHO, Its seem, some people can't get over the fact, their kid (a brainless Twit) isn't future Babe Ruth.
Your conclusion doesn't even remotely follow:
As I said before, there is NO EXCUSE for this "really stupid event" to occurr. And there is no way for you to explain it away. There is no excuse for assaulting a kid.
And you keep falling back on the "lawsuit" angle, and, while I sumbit it is likely, there has been no mention of it yet, so there is no reason to bring it up.
I guess, I'm Gulity ...I followed the liberal playbook. :P
I don't think he would have been arrested strictly on the word of the mother.
That was my point. The arrest itself indicates that there was enough evidence to indicate a crime had taken place.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.