Could Boeheim be in trouble?

seniorsooner

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He looks pretty damn bad now after he came out and called the accusers liars that were only out for money.

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/7288286/bernie-fine-fired-syracuse-amid-molestation-allegations

Sunday, November 27, 2011
Bernie Fine fired by Syracuse
Associated Press

SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Syracuse University associate head basketball coach Bernie Fine was fired Sunday in the wake of an investigation of child molestation allegations against him.

"At the direction of Chancellor Cantor, Bernie Fine's employment with Syracuse University has been terminated, effective immediately," Kevin Quinn, the school's senior vice president for public affairs, said in a statement.

The 65-year-old Fine was in his 36th season at his alma mater. He had the longest active streak of consecutive seasons at one school among assistant coaches in Division I.

Fine's firing comes in the wake of new revelations Sunday, including a third accuser. Fine had been placed on paid administrative leave when the accusations were first made public.

Two former Syracuse ball boys were the first to accuse Fine, who has called the allegations "patently false."

Zach Tomaselli, 23, of Lewiston, Maine, said Sunday that he told police that Fine molested him in 2002 in a Pittsburgh hotel room. He said Fine touched him "multiple" times in that one incident.

Tomaselli, who faces sexual assault charges in Maine involving a 14-year-old boy, said during a telephone interview with The Associated Press that he signed an affidavit accusing Fine following a meeting with Syracuse police last week in Albany.

Tomaselli's father, meanwhile, maintains his son is lying.

Two former Syracuse ball boys were the first to accuse Fine, who has called the allegations "patently false."

Bobby Davis, now 39, told ESPN that Fine molested him beginning in 1984 and that the sexual contact continued until he was around 27. A ball boy for six years, Davis told ESPN that the abuse occurred at Fine's home, at Syracuse basketball facilities and on team road trips, including the 1987 Final Four.

Davis' stepbrother, Mike Lang, 45, who also was a ball boy, told ESPN that Fine began molesting him while he was in fifth or sixth grade.

On Sunday, ESPN also played an audiotape, obtained and recorded by Davis, of an October 2002 telephone conversation between him and Bernie Fine's wife, Laurie.

Davis told ESPN he made the recording, which also has been given to Syracuse police, without her knowledge because he knew he needed proof for the police to believe his accusations. ESPN said it hired a voice recognition expert to verify the voice on the tape and the network said it was determined to be that of Laurie Fine.

During the call to the woman, Davis repeatedly asks her what she knew about the alleged molestation.

"Do you think I'm the only one that he's ever done that to?" Davis asked.

"No ... I think there might have been others but it was geared to ... there was something about you," the woman on the tape said.

On the tape, she also says she knew "everything that went on."

"Bernie has issues, maybe that he's not aware of, but he has issues. ... And you trusted somebody you shouldn't have trusted ... "


During his long career with Syracuse, Fine tutored the likes of Derrick Coleman, LeRon Ellis and John Wallace in his role of working with post players. Coleman was the top pick in the 1990 NBA draft, Ellis was the Clippers' 22nd overall choice in 1991, and Wallace was picked 18th in 1996 by the New York Knicks.

Boeheim and Fine met at Syracuse University in 1963, when Fine was student manager of the basketball team. Fine graduated in 1967 with a degree in personal and industrial relations and went into business for himself.

In 1970, Fine was named basketball and football coach at Lincoln Junior High in Syracuse and went to Henninger High School the next year as the junior varsity basketball coach. He became varsity basketball coach in 1975. When Boeheim was chosen to succeed Roy Danforth at Syracuse in 1976 Boeheim offered Fine a job as an assistant.

Fine was an integral part of the staff that guided Syracuse to the national championship in 2003. During his tenure the Orange also made two other appearances in the NCAA title game, losing in 1987 to Indiana and in 1996 to Kentucky.

Fine also guided the U.S. Maccabiah team to a silver medal at the 1993 World Maccabiah Games in Israel and has served as director of a successful basketball camp in the Northeast.

Fine, who always aspired to be a college head coach, got his chance when he substituted for Boeheim in 2001 when Boeheim missed the only two games of his coaching career following treatment for an enlarged prostate.

Syracuse has 40 straight winning seasons, the longest active streak in Division I, and Boeheim has 33 20-win seasons, also tops in Division I.

On Friday, federal authorities carried out a search at his Fine's suburban Syracuse home but declined to comment on what they were looking for.

New York State Police spokesman Jack Keller said troopers were called to assist the U.S. attorney's office at the search. At least six police vehicles were parked on the street during the search, which lasted around nine hours. Officers carted away three file cabinets and a computer for further examination.
 
Tough weekend at Bernie's house

what-you-did-there-i-see-it.thumbnail.jpg
 
I havent seen anything that implicates Boeheim in anyway, but his handling of this matter couldnt have been worse. With that said I wouldnt be shocked if it comes out that Boeheim pulled a Paterno.
 
It'll be interesting to see how Boeheim is treated relative to Petrino. As far as I know, there's no evidence that Boeheim knew anything, so he may be in the clear.

The saddest part of all this IMO is that 7th paragraph. People who get molested have a tendency to victimize kids themselves. It's a cycle that doesn't end.

Speaking of not ending... one of the accusers had a relationship with Fine into his late 20s. That's kinda weird.
 
Boeheim now back peddling, and quickly:

“The allegations that have come forth today are disturbing and deeply troubling. I am personally very shocked because I have never witnessed any of the activities that have been alleged. I believe the university took the appropriate step tonight. What is most important is that this matter be fully investigated and that anyone with information be supported to come forward so that the truth can be found. I deeply regret any statements I made that might have inhibited that from occurring or been insensitive to victims of abuse.”
 
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/29/s...NYT+>+Sports)&seid=auto&smid=tw-nytimessports

As Case Widens, So Do Concerns for Syracuse
By LYNN ZINSER

Nearly everything about the investigation into child sexual abuse allegations against Bernie Fine, a former assistant men’s basketball coach at Syracuse, took a more serious turn over the weekend. Fine was fired by the university after another accuser came forward and Coach Jim Boeheim quickly retracted his previous unconditional support of Fine.

But the legal issues involved also became more complex, with Syracuse likely reacting because of a sense of potential legal exposure, and the expansion of the investigation into a federal as well as a local one. The United States attorney’s office from the Northern District of New York and the Secret Service stepped into active roles, including searching Fine’s house and removing filing cabinets and a computer.

Fine has not yet been charged with any crime and has said he is not guilty of the accusations, but after initially placing Fine on administrative leave Nov. 17, the university fired him Sunday.

“Syracuse moved very quickly once someone else came out,” said Michael Dowd, a New York lawyer who has represented many victims of child and sexual abuse. “Boeheim was doing everything he could to back Fine when it was just two, but now it’s three.”

The importance of the third accuser — 23-year-old Zach Tomaselli of Lewiston, Me. — Dowd said, is that he alleges abuse in 2002, which may fall within state and federal statutes of limitations while the abuse alleged by the first two accusers, Bobby Davis and Mike Lang, happened too long ago to prosecute.

Syracuse’s response to the initial accusations brought by Davis to the university in 2005 also will be under a spotlight, several legal experts said. Officials said no action was taken at the time because they could not corroborate Davis’s claims.

“But why do you have to have corroboration for rape?” said Cynthia Bowman, a professor at the Cornell University School of Law. “One of the usual things about the Penn State case was you actually had someone walking through the locker room who saw this. Usually, how would you get corroboration? I would think they would need to determine it just hadn’t happened for some reason — like, they were in different places when the alleged crime took place — and not just a lack of corroboration.”

“They could be in a bad place because they did have notice,” she said, referring to Syracuse.

Unlike Penn State, Syracuse is a private university and is not shielded by the sovereign immunity that could possibly keep Penn State from being liable as a state entity.

“I think the university could have enormous liability, including Boeheim, who was in a supervisory capacity,” Dowd said. “It comes down to who knew what, or who should have known. And you have to ask, because Boeheim’s defense of Fine was so complete after the initial allegations, would he have been at all open to look into anything suspicious?”


The involvement of the Secret Service indicates there is an element of the case dealing with computers. According to Columbia University law professor Daniel C. Richman, a recent emphasis on prosecuting child pornography and exploitation has moved the Secret Service to offer help to local investigations that might involve those issues. It also has expertise in computer forensics, which could explain the removal of a computer from Fine’s house after the search.

If such searches revealed crimes that happened more recently than the current allegations, the statute of limitations question could no longer be an issue. John Duncan, a spokesman for the United States attorney’s office, said his office would not discuss which statutes were involved in the investigation, so he could not talk about what the statute of limitations on any of those would be.

Because the investigation is in such an early stage, the local and federal investigators are being vague about details.

In cases like this, there is the possibility of other accusers coming forward, as has happened in the case at Penn State against Jerry Sandusky, a former assistant football coach. Tomaselli came forward in the Syracuse case after seeing Davis and Lang make their accusations on ESPN.

“What we know about predators is, you might as well put them on an island and build a fence around it, because they are not going to stop,” Dowd said. “The fear of being caught does not stop them.

“This could end up being a huge case.”
 
How does an organization protect itself against these people getting on staff?

Assuming that sometimes these accusations are false, how does an individual protect themselves?

What a mess. It has to keep university presidents and athletic directors everywhere awake till the wee hours of the morning.
 
If you have an assistant coach with a ball boy living in his basement something is not right.

Screw Boeheim and screw Paterno. I hope these boys take them for every penny they have. There is little to zero chance you spend that much time around another guy and not notice any creepy behavior that would raise some suspicion.
 
I'm sure most folks on here don't care much for Berry Tramel, but he wrote a blog article today that said Boeheim should be fired.

I think Boeheim will be lucky if he keeps his job. His comments a few weeks back were pretty strong.
 
How does an organization protect itself against these people getting on staff?

Assuming that sometimes these accusations are false, how does an individual protect themselves?

What a mess. It has to keep university presidents and athletic directors everywhere awake till the wee hours of the morning.

You have to investigate allegations openly, honestly, and thoroughly. Trying to keep everything internal only hurts your position in the long run, especially when no action is taken.
 
If you have an assistant coach with a ball boy living in his basement something is not right.
Screw Boeheim and screw Paterno. I hope these boys take them for every penny they have. There is little to zero chance you spend that much time around another guy and not notice any creepy behavior that would raise some suspicion.

The kid was going on trips with the coach as a middle schooler, it doesn't take a federal investigation to ask what is going on.
 
I'm sure most folks on here don't care much for Berry Tramel, but he wrote a blog article today that said Boeheim should be fired.

I think Boeheim will be lucky if he keeps his job. His comments a few weeks back were pretty strong.

I honestly don't the Boeheim knew anything about it and that the guy is lying about Boeheim walking in on them. Think about if you were in his shoes and a guy accuses your friend of molesting him and was saying untrue things. WOuld you not get defensive and believe the guys whole story is untrue? I have to problem with the way Boeheim handled it. Unless of course evidence comes out the Boeheim knew about it
 
I honestly don't the Boeheim knew anything about it and that the guy is lying about Boeheim walking in on them. Think about if you were in his shoes and a guy accuses your friend of molesting him and was saying untrue things. WOuld you not get defensive and believe the guys whole story is untrue? I have to problem with the way Boeheim handled it. Unless of course evidence comes out the Boeheim knew about it

I can't really disagree with you but I think he would be fine if this weren't following the PSU scandal. Had this occurred 2 years ago or so, Boeheim's job wouldn't be in question, IMO.
 
If evidence surfaces that Boeheim knew about Fine, then he should be gone. But if there is no evidence he knew, why should he be fired?
 
It's interesting to me that Boeheim stated that he's NEVER been in Fine's hotel room on a road trip. I find that weird being that you have a 50 year friend that works with you and you've never had meetings or visits in his hotel room??? Boeheim's initial outburst seems like he was trying to divert something.
 
Jim Boeheim has and always will be an ***hole, situations like this and when his teams were rightfully snubbed from the tournament a few years ago reveal his true character.
 
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