Former Chief Sealth assistant coaches sue players' parents, alleging defamation

The two assistant coaches fired following a recruiting scandal at Chief Sealth High School last year have filed a lawsuit against some parents who spoke with The Seattle Times about problems with the girls basketball program at the West Seattle school.

They and other parents had detailed enticements the coaches offered to recruit girls — some from outside the Seattle Public Schools — to play for the basketball team. Girls received dinners and were promised college scholarships if they would play for Chief Sealth.

The team in 2006 was undefeated, with a 22-0 record, and nationally ranked by Sports Illustrated and USA Today.

The Times' articles, published beginning in February 2006, prompted the school district to conduct its own investigation into the coaches' recruiting practices. The district then fired assistant coaches Amos Walters and Laura Fuller and head coach Ray Willis.

The coaches' efforts also raised national concern over ethics in high-school athletics. As a result of The Times stories, Chief Sealth was subsequently stripped of the 2005 and 2006 Class 3A state titles by the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association.

Former assistant coaches Walters and Fuller filed their lawsuit May 11 in King County Superior Court, saying that parents Rebecca Rogers, Darliene Boswell and Edward and Sheila Winston defamed them when they were quoted in the series of articles. The Seattle Times is not being sued.

According to the complaint, Walters and Fuller deny ever recruiting girls for the team, a practice forbidden by the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association.

Following publication of the stories, Walters was physically and verbally assaulted, harassed and humiliated in public and called a cheater, according to the coaches' civil lawsuit.

Fuller also was ostracized and called names. Both are on anti-depressant medication and in counseling to cope with the trauma, the lawsuit said. Attempts to contact the coaches' attorney, Brenda Little, were unsuccessful.

The parents learned about the lawsuit a few days ago and were stunned.

"The fact is that they actually did recruit us," said Rebecca Rogers. Her 6-foot-2 daughter, Leah, was given a fake apartment lease so it would appear she lived within the Seattle district and eligible to play for Chief Sealth. She was assisted in the purchase of a car so she could drive back and forth from her Renton home to the school, and was promised help securing college scholarships.

"I'm overwhelmed by this. ... All I did was tell the truth to the paper. [The coaches] hurt our children," Rogers said.

After their firings, the two assistant coaches and the head coach, Willis, tried to get their jobs back, filing motions for summary judgment against the school district in King County Superior Court. About two weeks ago, Judge Gregory Canova ruled in favor of the Seattle School District.

Fuller and Walters then withdrew their motion and filed suit against the Seattle School District, alleging they were discriminated against based on their race — they are black — and that the district created a hostile work environment.

Nancy Bartley: 206-464-8522

or nbartley@seattletimes.com