A Minnesota high school girls hockey coach was falsely accused by 6 parents of child sexual assault and other inappropriate behavior, but the truth came out after he filed a defamation lawsuit.
Head coach David Marvin was able to get his team to win a state championship in 2022, but the accomplishment was marred by accusations from current and former students.
Marvin filed the defamation lawsuit in 2023, and on Wednesday the six parents admitted the allegations were untrue.
‘I’m looking forward to moving forward.’
“The letter contained untrue statements accusing Marvin of criminal activity, sexual harassment, and other wrongful conduct. [We] regret signing the letter and regret any impact [our actions] had on Coach Marvin’s reputation or the Warroad Girls Hockey Program,” read a statement signed by five of the families.
The parents had taken their concerns to the school district, but officials decided against acting on the accusations. So the parents took to social media and posted the accusations in an open letter on Oct. 30, 2023. The letter accused the coach of sexual assault, making “sexually harassing comments,” hazing, and causing emotional distress.
The comments were widely circulated even after the Warroad School defended the coach and said the accusations were false.
Five of the parents admitted that they had not verified the allegations in the letter before sending it out, and the sixth parent said only that she didn’t write the letter and that she had not made false statements. The sixth parent was ordered to pay Marvin $17,000 in damages.
The other parents were ordered to make a $5,000 donation to a non-profit that works to improve the mental health of athletes. The parents’ allegations against the coach are also to be removed from social media.
“I’m really happy with this result and I’m looking forward to moving forward,” said Warroad Public Schools Superintendent Shawn Yates via a phone statement to WCCO-TV.
Yates said he expects Marvin to coach the team again this year.
Here’s a news video report about the case from WCCO on YouTube.
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