Coach Pays Kid to Hurt Retarded Kid

Crapshoot · 07-15-2005, 05:53 PM

Quote:

PITTSBURGH (AP) -- A T-ball coach allegedly paid one of his players $25 to hurt an 8-year-old mentally disabled teammate so he wouldn't have to put the boy in the game, police said Friday.

Mark R. Downs Jr., 27, of Dunbar, is accused of offering one of his players the money to hit the boy in the head with a baseball, police said. Witnesses told police Downs didn't want the boy to play in the game because of his disability.

Police said the boy was hit in the head and in the groin with a baseball just before a game, and didn't play, police said.

"The coach was very competitive," state police Trooper Thomas B. Broadwater said. "He wanted to win."

Downs has an unpublished telephone number and couldn't immediately be reached for comment Friday. It was unclear whether he had an attorney.

He was arrested and arraigned Friday on charges including criminal solicitation to commit aggravated assault and corruption of minors. He was released from jail on an unsecured bond.

The alleged assault happened June 27 in North Union Township, about 40 miles southeast of Pittsburgh, authorities said.

The boy's mother asked state police to investigate her son's injuries because she suspected Downs wanted to keep the boy off the field, despite a league rule that required each player to participate in three innings a game, Broadwater said.

Eric Forsythe, the president of the R.W. Clark Youth Baseball League, said Downs had two daughters on the T-ball team.

League organizers investigated accusations against Downs before the T-ball season ended earlier this month but could not prove that he did anything wrong. If Downs is convicted of any crime, he won't be allowed to be a coach next year, Forsythe said. The league is not affiliated with Little League International.

Seriously- wtf ? You think hurting the kid is the best way to do this ?

kingfc22 · 07-15-2005, 05:57 PM

That is one f'd up dude.

Raiders Army · 07-15-2005, 06:01 PM

If this is true (innocent until proven guilty and all that), then it's sad and extremely disheartening to youth sports.

sabotai · 07-15-2005, 07:11 PM

"The coach was very competitive," state police Trooper Thomas B. Broadwater said. "He wanted to win."

Ya think?

Izulde · 07-15-2005, 07:31 PM

As someone whose coached youth soccer before (12 and 13 year old girls), I find this particularly repungant.

I always made sure even the worst players on my team got roughly a half's worth of play in if I could.

Did this hurt my record? Not really... It was essentially the same team that had gone 1-15 the year before... I took them over and we went 6-9-1, including an upset of the number one team in the league, whose only loss that year was to us.

Plus, I find when you play all your kids, some of them really develop and make progress.

My favourite example was a girl on the team named Leah. She was awkward in net, but I saw she had potential there, so I split both starts and time in goal between her and this other girl. By the end of the season, she not only solidified the starting spot permanently from Brittany, she'd turned into a damn good goalie and even had a couple shutouts. More importantly, she had elevated her self-confidence to a level she'd never had before. Her mom was amazed at the difference.

And I think that's what youth sports is really all about. It's not necessarily about turning the kids into superstars and all that kind of thing, though you do try and help them develop their skills. What's most important is the sense of self-confidence they can get from it and the fun they can have from playing the game... and of course winning a few games is always nice, too.

KWhit · 07-15-2005, 07:36 PM

People suck.

gstelmack · 07-15-2005, 07:37 PM

The best youth sports teams I was on played everyone at least some. It helps develop a team spirit, a key ingredient in a winning team.

KWhit · 07-15-2005, 07:41 PM

He should get together with that drunk mom.

Honolulu_Blue · 07-15-2005, 07:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Izulde

As someone whose coached youth soccer before (12 and 13 year old girls) ...

Izulde's first game...

Izulde: All right, girls! I am looking for you to play good enough to inspire our fans... take their breath away and expand their creative horizons again... I want you to soar with each pass or slide tackle and know there's still beauty in the world and make it dazzle with each and every goal... and I want you to show us all that.

Girls: Yes! Yes that's exactly what we want to do, coach!

So then I grinned, leapt on my feet, walked over on the blanket and we all joined hands.. "What I want you all to do is lift us off our feet and show us how to fly again... to live again..."

Looking back on it now, there was a sparkle in their eyes... I think I saw that moment in their collective faces... then, just as we were about to take the field, I paused and waited too long... so they laughed, said I was a dork and they ran off to pick blackberries again together.

We had to forefeit the game.

Draft Dodger · 07-15-2005, 07:51 PM

wow. speechless.

JimboJ · 07-15-2005, 08:34 PM

Sorry, but I don't buy this story. It sounds like one of those stories that starts out based on a tiny grain of truth, and then rumors start flying, and it just snowballs into something much bigger until the press finally gets hold of it. Like maybe the guy made a joke about the kid getting hurt, and then he really did happen to get hurt accidentally, and then everyone starts making assumptions from there.

I coach my kid's baseball team, and at the t-ball level in our league, they don't even keep score. So why would a coach be that opposed to playing the disabled kid to actually want to hurt him? Maybe he is just an evil person, but I'd like to think there is more to this story than this.

BigJohn&TheLions · 07-16-2005, 11:16 AM

In defense of this guy, the retarded kid must have been a really bad player. The other kids want to win too, and why should they have to suffer so that one kid doesn't get his feelings hurt. I mean, T-ball is an important part of society and this kid shouldn't have been on the team in the first place...

OK, in all seriousness this asshole should have his legs cut off at the knees then put on an adult softball team and forced to play center field. When he can't get to the pop-fly his teammates should beat him until he can't remember his own name.

Tom E · 07-16-2005, 02:29 PM

The coach should be shot...Seriously...BTW, the kid is a retard. Couldn't the coach have paid the tard the 25 bucks to hurt himself and cut out the middle man, err. I mean kid...

07-15-2005, 05:57 PM	#2
kingfc22 Head Coach Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Morgan Hill, CA	That is one f'd up dude. __________________ Fan of SF Giants, 49ers, Sharks, Arsenal Last edited by kingfc22 : 07-15-2005 at 05:57 PM.

07-15-2005, 07:31 PM	#5
Izulde Head Coach Join Date: Sep 2004	As someone whose coached youth soccer before (12 and 13 year old girls), I find this particularly repungant. I always made sure even the worst players on my team got roughly a half's worth of play in if I could. Did this hurt my record? Not really... It was essentially the same team that had gone 1-15 the year before... I took them over and we went 6-9-1, including an upset of the number one team in the league, whose only loss that year was to us. Plus, I find when you play all your kids, some of them really develop and make progress. My favourite example was a girl on the team named Leah. She was awkward in net, but I saw she had potential there, so I split both starts and time in goal between her and this other girl. By the end of the season, she not only solidified the starting spot permanently from Brittany, she'd turned into a damn good goalie and even had a couple shutouts. More importantly, she had elevated her self-confidence to a level she'd never had before. Her mom was amazed at the difference. And I think that's what youth sports is really all about. It's not necessarily about turning the kids into superstars and all that kind of thing, though you do try and help them develop their skills. What's most important is the sense of self-confidence they can get from it and the fun they can have from playing the game... and of course winning a few games is always nice, too. __________________ 2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty)

07-15-2005, 07:37 PM	#7
gstelmack Pro Starter Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Cary, NC	The best youth sports teams I was on played everyone at least some. It helps develop a team spirit, a key ingredient in a winning team. __________________ -- Greg -- Author of various FOF utilities

07-15-2005, 07:51 PM	#10
Draft Dodger Coordinator Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: Keene, NH	wow. speechless. __________________ Mile High Hockey

07-16-2005, 11:16 AM	#12
BigJohn&TheLions College Benchwarmer Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: New York	In defense of this guy, the retarded kid must have been a really bad player. The other kids want to win too, and why should they have to suffer so that one kid doesn't get his feelings hurt. I mean, T-ball is an important part of society and this kid shouldn't have been on the team in the first place... OK, in all seriousness this asshole should have his legs cut off at the knees then put on an adult softball team and forced to play center field. When he can't get to the pop-fly his teammates should beat him until he can't remember his own name. __________________ In the immortal words of a great alcoholic, "Can't we all just get along?"

07-15-2005, 06:01 PM	#3
Raiders Army Coordinator Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: The Black Hole	If this is true (innocent until proven guilty and all that), then it's sad and extremely disheartening to youth sports.

07-15-2005, 07:11 PM	#4
sabotai General Manager Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: The Satellite of Love	"The coach was very competitive," state police Trooper Thomas B. Broadwater said. "He wanted to win." Ya think?

07-15-2005, 07:36 PM	#6
KWhit Coordinator Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Conyers GA	People suck.

07-15-2005, 07:41 PM	#8
KWhit Coordinator Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Conyers GA	He should get together with that drunk mom.

07-15-2005, 08:34 PM	#11
JimboJ High School Varsity Join Date: Aug 2003	Sorry, but I don't buy this story. It sounds like one of those stories that starts out based on a tiny grain of truth, and then rumors start flying, and it just snowballs into something much bigger until the press finally gets hold of it. Like maybe the guy made a joke about the kid getting hurt, and then he really did happen to get hurt accidentally, and then everyone starts making assumptions from there. I coach my kid's baseball team, and at the t-ball level in our league, they don't even keep score. So why would a coach be that opposed to playing the disabled kid to actually want to hurt him? Maybe he is just an evil person, but I'd like to think there is more to this story than this.

07-16-2005, 02:29 PM	#13
Tom E H.S. Freshman Team Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Livermore, CA	The coach should be shot...Seriously...BTW, the kid is a retard. Couldn't the coach have paid the tard the 25 bucks to hurt himself and cut out the middle man, err. I mean kid... __________________ Be Polite Be Proffesional And Be Ready to Kill... I'll Never Forget What's Her Name... A Democrat is Somebody who Knows the Issues, a Republican is Somebody who Understands the Issues...

Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)