Coach found guilty of ordering player to bean 9-year-old autistic child
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Worst sports story ever? Coach found guilty of ordering player to bean 9-year-old autistic child
Baseball coach convicted of two lesser counts
Associated Press
UNIONTOWN, Pa. -- A baseball coach accused of offering an 8-year-old money to bean an autistic teammate so he couldn't play was convicted Thursday of two lesser charges against him, and evaded more serious charges.
A jury convicted 29-year-old Mark R. Downs Jr. of corruption of minors and criminal solicitation to commit simple assault, Fayette County authorities said.
Downs was acquitted of criminal solicitation to commit aggravated assault, and jurors said they were deadlocked on a charge of reckless endangerment. The judge declared a mistrial on the endangerment charge.
Authorities said Downs offered to pay one of his T-ball players $25 to hit a 9-year-old autistic teammate with a ball while warming up before a June 2005 playoff game.
The verdict means the jury believed that Downs asked his player to hurt his teammate, but that the jury did not feel that the autistic boy -- who suffered bruises and an infected ear -- suffered "serious bodily injury," District Attorney Nancy Vernon said. Aggravated assault and reckless endangerment both require authorities to prove that serious bodily injury occurred or was intended to occur.
"Certainly, the bruising on the ear fortunately did not amount to serious bodily injury," Vernon said. "That's what [the verdict] boiled down to. It vindicates the fact the little boys, the jury believed they were telling the truth."
Downs took the stand and denied offering to pay Keith Reese Jr. to hurt Harry Bowers, his mildly autistic and mildly retarded teammate.
Earlier in the trial, Reese testified about Downs' offer, saying he purposely threw a ball that hit Bowers in the groin, then threw another ball that hit him in the ear on Downs' instructions. Bowers also testified about being hit by the balls Reese threw during pregame warmups.
Reese's father, Keith Sr., testified that Downs acknowledged after the game that he did something "ignorant" and confessed to the deed. When Downs called the elder Reese a liar during his testimony Wednesday, Reese shouted back "You're a liar," prompting the judge to restore order.
Jury forewoman Michele Lynn, a 28-year-old medical office manager, said the jury believed that Downs told his player to harm his teammate, but they didn't believe his injuries were serious enough to warrant the aggravated assault and reckless endangerment charges.
"I myself didn't believe he caused any serious bodily harm," Lynn said.
The jury didn't believe Downs, in part, because doing so would have required them to believe that all of the prosecution witnesses, including the two boys, were lying.
"His whole demeanor was flat, he was inexpressive," Lynn said of Downs. "That led me to believe he was not telling the truth. He would corrupt any young children's morals."
Downs, the boys, and their families left the courtroom without commenting, but Downs' attorney, Thomas Shaffer, promised to appeal.
Shaffer said he believes Judge Ralph Warman erred by not letting him call a witness who would have testified that Reese's stepmother called the whole incident "a misunderstanding."
"In reality, the truth did not come out," Shaffer said.
The maximum sentence for the Downs' crimes is five years in prison, but under Pennsylvania sentencing guidelines he likely faces only probation when he's sentenced Oct. 12 because he is not known to have a criminal record. Vernon said she will not argue for a particular sentence, leaving the matter entirely to the judge's discretion.
"This is a serious breach of sportsmanlike conduct," Vernon said.
Baseball coach convicted of two lesser counts
Associated Press
UNIONTOWN, Pa. -- A baseball coach accused of offering an 8-year-old money to bean an autistic teammate so he couldn't play was convicted Thursday of two lesser charges against him, and evaded more serious charges.
A jury convicted 29-year-old Mark R. Downs Jr. of corruption of minors and criminal solicitation to commit simple assault, Fayette County authorities said.
Downs was acquitted of criminal solicitation to commit aggravated assault, and jurors said they were deadlocked on a charge of reckless endangerment. The judge declared a mistrial on the endangerment charge.
Authorities said Downs offered to pay one of his T-ball players $25 to hit a 9-year-old autistic teammate with a ball while warming up before a June 2005 playoff game.
The verdict means the jury believed that Downs asked his player to hurt his teammate, but that the jury did not feel that the autistic boy -- who suffered bruises and an infected ear -- suffered "serious bodily injury," District Attorney Nancy Vernon said. Aggravated assault and reckless endangerment both require authorities to prove that serious bodily injury occurred or was intended to occur.
"Certainly, the bruising on the ear fortunately did not amount to serious bodily injury," Vernon said. "That's what [the verdict] boiled down to. It vindicates the fact the little boys, the jury believed they were telling the truth."
Downs took the stand and denied offering to pay Keith Reese Jr. to hurt Harry Bowers, his mildly autistic and mildly retarded teammate.
Earlier in the trial, Reese testified about Downs' offer, saying he purposely threw a ball that hit Bowers in the groin, then threw another ball that hit him in the ear on Downs' instructions. Bowers also testified about being hit by the balls Reese threw during pregame warmups.
Reese's father, Keith Sr., testified that Downs acknowledged after the game that he did something "ignorant" and confessed to the deed. When Downs called the elder Reese a liar during his testimony Wednesday, Reese shouted back "You're a liar," prompting the judge to restore order.
Jury forewoman Michele Lynn, a 28-year-old medical office manager, said the jury believed that Downs told his player to harm his teammate, but they didn't believe his injuries were serious enough to warrant the aggravated assault and reckless endangerment charges.
"I myself didn't believe he caused any serious bodily harm," Lynn said.
The jury didn't believe Downs, in part, because doing so would have required them to believe that all of the prosecution witnesses, including the two boys, were lying.
"His whole demeanor was flat, he was inexpressive," Lynn said of Downs. "That led me to believe he was not telling the truth. He would corrupt any young children's morals."
Downs, the boys, and their families left the courtroom without commenting, but Downs' attorney, Thomas Shaffer, promised to appeal.
Shaffer said he believes Judge Ralph Warman erred by not letting him call a witness who would have testified that Reese's stepmother called the whole incident "a misunderstanding."
"In reality, the truth did not come out," Shaffer said.
The maximum sentence for the Downs' crimes is five years in prison, but under Pennsylvania sentencing guidelines he likely faces only probation when he's sentenced Oct. 12 because he is not known to have a criminal record. Vernon said she will not argue for a particular sentence, leaving the matter entirely to the judge's discretion.
"This is a serious breach of sportsmanlike conduct," Vernon said.
"Where there is sacrifice there is someone collecting the sacrificial offerings."-- Ayn Rand
"Some of my friends sit around every evening and they worry about the times ahead,
But everybody else is overwhelmed by indifference and the promise of an early bed..."-- Elvis Costello
"Some of my friends sit around every evening and they worry about the times ahead,
But everybody else is overwhelmed by indifference and the promise of an early bed..."-- Elvis Costello
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- the great Sir Leo Harrison
Understatement of the year.
R.i.p. My Dad - May 28, 2007
R.i.p. Black Tail (cat) - Sept. 20, 2008
T-ball coach gets 1-6 years in prison for hiring player to bean teammate
Friday, October 13, 2006
By Moustafa Ayad, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
A Fayette County judge yesterday sentenced a T-ball coach convicted of hiring an 8-year-old to whip a baseball at an autistic teammate to one to six years in prison.
Mark R. Downs Jr., 29, of Dunbar, sat solemnly and declined to speak on his own behalf, before Judge Ralph C. Warman sentenced him for conspiracy to commit simple assault and corruption of minors.
Mr. Downs was convicted last month for offering his star pitcher $25 to hurl two baseballs at Harry Bowers Jr., 11, an autistic and mildly retarded teammate. Witnesses testified that Mr. Downs was only concerned about winning a playoff game and that he believed that Harry was a liability to the team.
Keith Reese Jr., now 9, was offered the money and a promise to play fall league baseball, before he hit Harry with two balls -- one that smashed against the left side of his face, and a second, which hit him in the groin.
Mr. Downs' twin 9-year-old daughters, who sat in the front row throughout his trial, left the room with a family member shortly before the judge delivered the sentence. Their father showed no emotion as he was handcuffed and then led out of the courtroom past his fiancee who was cradling their 61/2-week-old baby.
"These acts that the jury found the defendant committed are extremely reprehensible," said Judge Warman. "They were outrageous and extremely reprehensible since the defendant was involved in the coaching of youth sports team with children."
He said Mr. Downs was in a position of "authority, leadership and trust" and that he had failed to instill the concepts of "sportsmanship and camaraderie." The judge said there were two victims in the case, Keith and Harry.
Judge Warman revoked Mr. Downs' bond before he was taken to jail to await transfer to a state prison.
When asked if the sentence was too harsh, Mr. Downs replied "yes" as he was escorted down the Fayette County courthouse stairwell.
"He was sure made an example of," said Ron Ledgerton Jr., who testified on behalf of Mr. Downs yesterday in an attempt to lower his sentence. "Coaches are going to have to be more aware what they do with these kids."
Thomas Shaffer, Mr. Downs' lawyer, implied that Keith had accidently or deliberately hit Harry with the ball and then lied about the bribe to try and clear himself of any wrongdoing.
Mr. Shaffer called on Mr. Ledgerton and Eric Forsythe, the head of the R.W. Clark Youth Baseball League, yesterday in the hope of getting Mr. Downs a reduced sentence.
Mr. Ledgerton, who is an umpire for the league, was central to the defense's case because Mr. Downs testified that he had jokingly told the entire team he would give them $25 to "line drive" the umpire after a bad call.
Mr. Ledgerton testified he could not understand why Mr. Downs would ask his players to throw a baseball at him and that he had never heard the statement.
Fayette County District Attorney Nancy Vernon said she agreed with the sentencing based on the fact that Mr. Downs' actions were "outrageous."
Jennifer Bowers, Harry's mother, said the sentence gave her closure. She said she has had to hire a specialist to come to her home to help Harry deal with the fallout from the incident. Her child is especially scared of T-ball, she said.
"Hopefully we can close the book on this," said Mrs. Bowers. She said Harry has been frightened and refuses to play any sports.
"Harry has been afraid that it's going to happen again," she said. "We are just happy to put this behind us. Me and him just want to close this chapter and start proceeding with our life."
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06286/729695-85.stm
was like a picture
of a sunny day
“We can complain because rose bushes have thorns, or rejoice because thorn bushes have roses.”
― Abraham Lincoln
but thats just me.....
Till there aint nothing left worth taking away from me.....
http://forums.pearljam.com/showthread.php?t=272825
Sammi: Wanna just break up?
http://forums.pearljam.com/showthread.php?t=272825
That doesn't mean she shouldn't have. And if the kid got hit in the head with the ball during the game...then yea, it would have been an accident. That's not the case. The coach actually paid money to another kid to try and injure this kid enough to keep him from playing the game. Essiantially he turned 8 year old into a hitman. I wouldn't have given a shit if the kid he targeted was healthy. All so he wouldn't loose a fucking baseball game that involves kids around the age of eight?
I don't think anyone can reasonably expect an 8 yr old to be able to throw a baseball hard enough to really cause crippling damage to anyone. I think it's obvious that this coach just wanted the autistic kid to become discouraged.
http://forums.pearljam.com/showthread.php?t=272825
I'm not sure and I tried looking but couldn't find anything but I'm assuming that it would be far easier to injure and autistic child than a normal healthy one. Perhaps a ball to the temple maybe? Can anyone list some facts or something to either prove me wrong or prove me right?
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-I know 8 year old girls with strong pitching skills....the coach is lucky no permanent physical damage was done. It's sad enough that the autistic kid might not play in a team sport ever again.
-Harding didn't go to jail because she admitted her guilt. If she had denied everything all along like this guy did, she would've served time.
-his sentence is a little harsh-if this had happened to my kid, I would have taken a baseball bat to the coach's car or driven by his house while he was cutting the lawn and thrown a baseball at his head.
-In most cases, a child that is simply 'autistic' isn't physically different from a 'normal' child. Their heads will react the same when hit with a hard object....they don't hurt "more" or "differently" because they're autistic. Actually, some autistic kids have an extremely high tolerance/don't react when they're in pain.
You would be surprised at how hard a 9 year old can throw, and obviously he threw fairly accurately because he hit the child twice in two sensitive spots, the head and groin. That aside, emotional damage done to a child can at times be worse than physical damage. That the coach would target a defenseless, mentally challenged child who just wanted to fit in and play with some boys his age is reprehensible. Added to the fact that in the second article posted the coach also offered the kids $25 to hit the umpire for a bad call shows the man is vicious and manipulative.
Coaches are in a position of authority and are in charge of children. What would you do if a teacher in school told the children in his charge to throw things at your child because he wasn't up to snuff with the rest of the class?
"Some of my friends sit around every evening and they worry about the times ahead,
But everybody else is overwhelmed by indifference and the promise of an early bed..."-- Elvis Costello
I've never seen a 9 year old who could throw much over about 35 mph, and that kid is now on a university scholarship for pitching. The fact that the kid hit was autistic should be immaterial to the offense.
I'd heavily fine the coach and give him a ton of community service. The community and autistic kids are in no way safer with this guy in jail, and it's not like this was a common occurance where an example needed to be made to prevent future incidences.
The justice system is no place for irrational, emotionally based sentences.
when it hits you, you feel to pain.
So brutalize me with music.”
~ Bob Marley
If a person's response when something doesn't go his way is violence, how is it he's not a danger to society? I don't like the call that ump made, hit him. I don't want that retarded kid messing up my chances to win, hit him. And the fact that he manipulates young children to do it is deplorable.
If this sort of behavior surfaces during a LITTLE LEAGUE GAME, then I would bet money it surfaces elsewhere.
"Some of my friends sit around every evening and they worry about the times ahead,
But everybody else is overwhelmed by indifference and the promise of an early bed..."-- Elvis Costello
I wonder what he would have done if the stakes had been REALLY high...like a spelling bee. Sniper?
The coach asked an eight year old to do something wrong and cruel. The coach valued winning a game more than being a good example for the children on his team. The coach obviously didn't care that he could have damaged a child's brain...a brain that already has enough challenges to deal with!!! *angry face here*
Then, maybe he resented the child being on the team? Perhaps the parents of the child should have been sensitive to the fact that their son was making the team lose and that there was resentment rather than simply pushing his right to BE on the team?
It makes me sad. :(
P.S. I'm glad he is having to face a consequence for this.
No way! They're eight year old. They shouldn't even be worried about winning or losing, just playing the game. A score shouldn't even be kept for kids that age.
Anybody could be hurt by a hard ball thrown at their head!!!
Despite the fact that autistic kids don't react to pain in the same way as others doesn't mean it couldn't cause more damage to a brain that already has extra work to do to compensate.
It was a playoff game so the team obviously won more games than they lost up until that point.
Does anyone know if the team actually won?
We're talking about 8 year olds. The game should be about the experience, not the final score. That boy had every right to be there and for you to even hint that the parents were wrong in letting him play is really sad. Like I said-they had done well up until that point...how much of a liability was this kid? Every team has a "worst" player... Why didn't they just bench him? Would the coach have done this if the kid wasn't autistic? Taken out his worst player?
The autistic brain works in a different way but it isn't softer than a normal one... their brains can't be hurt 'more' than a normal brain.
Not saying it could be hurt more, I'm saying anyone's brain could be hurt by a hard ball and it would be the last thing they'd need.
1-6 years?
the emotions created by this story and the fact that the kid was autistic really should play no role in determining this guy's sentense.
give him community service and let the parents of both kids knock him around for a while, but that's it.
Whether it happened in the game or not, the idiot coach PAID a child to INJURE another child. I am sure lots of children retaliate on other children in game, they learn it from the pros. How is accepting money and hurting another child not violent? What if the child would have been hit in the eye or the nose? Does it take blood pouring out of a child's face to make it a violent crime? What does the kid who got paid think of it? I am sure if it was your autistic child, you would be singin' a different song. I would love to see you stand in front of a line of 6-8 yr olds and let them bean you in the head or someplace a little more private. I bet at least one of them will hurt you.
BASEBALL IS A GAME.
This one in particular is played by 9 YEAR OLDS. Baseball to a little kid is SUPPOSED TO BE FUN.
...
It is NOT THAT IMPORTANT to win. At that age, you are teaching kids about the team concept. Part of that team concept does not include taking out a team mate so you will win the game on Saturday.
Hail, Hail!!!