RebKell's Junkie Boards

[bluewolfvii]

[bballjunkee212]

I read through the thread over on Pennlive. Some real hostility towards lawyers- can't imagine why - and real hostility towards public knowledge of the actual facts- the "accept it and move on" attitude.

Well I AM a lawyer, and here's what I think about the situation:

First, I think a lot of the anger over this situation is directed at Rene Portland because of her not-so-private view towards Lesbians. As richly deserved as our contempt for her on this matter may be, we have no facts to support any assumption that her anti-Lesbian attitude played any role in the dismissal of the players. Until facts of wrongdoing (which is where, in this context, I would place Rene's atttitude) are revealed, we would do well not to assume the innocence of the players and the guilt of Rene/PSU.

That said, I don't see a problem with a lawsuit.

We may be a litigious society, and there are reasons for that which I will not address here. But even so, I can tell you that nearly every lawyer I know would weigh very carefully the merits of a possible lawsuit by one of the players, as well as what the lawsuit could hope to accomplish. Lawsuits, however many there may be, are generally not filed rashly.

So what could the player(s) hope to achieve here? A couple of things, maybe. First, keep in mind that by NCAA rule a player who transfers must sit out a year. In addition, if a B10 player transfers to another B10 school, conference rules dictate that she give up the scholarship. This occurred with April Calhoun when she transferred from Iowa to Minnesota (although the cynic in me believes that Minnesota is finding ways to ease the financial path for her.) But if the player could show that she lost her scholarship due to wrongdoing by PSU or its representative (Portland), that might serve as a basis to petition the NCAA to waive the one-year sitting out period. In addition, even though another B10 (or other school) might not be compelled to pick up her a scholarship, she would certainly have a case for damages, where PSU could be liable to the extent of the scholarship. Of course, all this may be superseded by scholarship rules I don't know about, but in the ordinary course of things, if the player lost the scholarship because wrongful conduct by the school, she should have a case for damages.

In addition to money damages, a lawsuit would also clear the air about what was said and why. If, as we suspect, Rene ran the players off for being Lesbians, and that information became public, it would likely be the end of her career and a real black mark on PSU- in short, heads would roll. I imagine PSU would do much to avoid that- although if it came down to sacrificing Rene for the good of the institution, she would be sacrificed. So a lawsuit which revealed wrongdoing by Portland would probably be a good housecleaning for PSU.

But the matter is a double-edged sword if the players involved were Lesbian and were not planning on coming out. In a lawsuit, all would be revealed. The question is whether they are ready for that.

~Bill

[sbjules]

[Sass]

This is delicious. I hope she gets her ass sued off.

_________________
_________________
More high school team allegiances than can be believed
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He's the greatest of the greater
get it straight - he's great
- Run-DMC

[CamrnCrz1974]

[dtsnms]

Hey Cam, it's getting uncomfortable.

Your avatar keeps staring at me..

[bluewolfvii]

[p_d_swanson]

[shock6666]

Looks like Harris has found a home...but Bland seems to be having some difficulty getting her release....


http://www.pennlive.com/sports/patriotnews/index.ssf?/base/sports/1116321660102630.xml#continue

"Bland needs to secure her release by tomorrow in order to meet the NCAA transfer deadline.

"I have requested my release and been told that, unless my father calls, my release will not be granted," said Bland, a 5-10 freshman guard. "Rene told me I really don't want you to go, but I just want to go [transfer]." "

[Hoopsta1415]

I wish none of this drama had happened. I'm going to Penn State next year and was hoping to be able to see Harris play. So much for that.