Do you sue your school district because your daughter was kicked off her soccer team days before a state semifinal for questioning a coach’s decision?
You do when you believe your daughter was treated unfairly by a coach who ignored her next-day apology, by an athletic director who provided no opportunity for the girl to present her side of the story, and by administrators who failed to thoroughly investigate the incident.
You do when you believe the coach’s actions, backed by the athletic director and an assistant principal, were as personal as they were excessive, and clearly violated the policies in the student conduct handbook.
You do when you believe your daughter’s conduct would have been tolerated, even excused, if a male athlete of similar stature had behaved similarly.
“We’re not lawsuit people who think our kids are always right,” Moorings resident Megan D’Elia said. “But what happened wasn’t right, and we’ve got to stand up for our children.”
That’s why D’Elia and her husband, Anthony, have retained the services of prominent civil rights attorney Jasmine Rand, who last summer notified the School Board of the family’s intent to file a federal lawsuit, alleging the actions taken in February 2019 against their soccer-playing daughter, Brie, violated Title IX protections from gender-based discrimination in public education.
Rand said she expects the lawsuit to be filed in U.S. District Court, probably in Fort Pierce, within the next month.
In addition to monetary damages and reimbursement for legal expenses – Rand said the D’Elias plan to use any cash awarded to fund scholarships for female athletes – the family wants the district to replace Vero Beach High School girls soccer coach Dan Dickens.
The family also wants the school district to train administrators to be more responsive to issues brought to them by female athletes, and ensure that female athletes will be treated the same as their male counterparts.
“We did try to resolve the matter,” said Rand, who represented the families of Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown, both of whom were shot dead in headline-grabbing, racially charged incidents.
“This is not about the money; it’s about principle,” she added. “Brie is no longer in school there – she has gone off to college – but her parents are taking a stand.”
School spokesperson Cristen Maddux did not reply to an email seeking comment on the impending lawsuit. Likewise, Vero Beach High School Athletic Director Lenny Jankowski did not respond to a text message, and a call to his cellphone produced a recording that his voicemail box was full.
Based on interviews, statements and records, here’s what happened:
The Vero Beach girls soccer team was closing out a rousing, 3-1 victory over perennial championship contender Boca Raton at the Citrus Bowl, a victory that would send them to the 2019 state semifinals. Then, in the closing moments of the Feb. 12 game, with just three minutes remaining, Dickens pulled Brie off the field and replaced her with a substitute.
“Why are you taking me off the field?” Brie asked as she arrived on the sideline.
“You’re not listening to me!” Dickens said.
Brie had played the entire game to that point and, as you’d expect, was miffed she wasn’t allowed to finish off the home finale of her high school career. She fired back: “Coach, I haven’t listened to you all game and we are winning.”
Dickens snapped. “Turn in your jersey,” he told her. “You’re off the team.”
Brie was sobbing uncontrollably when she told her parents what had occurred – a revelation that prompted her father to return to the field where he confronted Dickens and angrily swatted a cellphone out of his hand.
Hours later, Anthony D’Elia sent Dickens an email apologizing for his outburst, explaining that his daughter felt demoralized by the coach, who often yelled at her during games. Dickens wasn’t satisfied, insisting Brie’s father be arrested for battery – a charge prosecutors eventually dropped.
As for Brie, she went to see Dickens the morning after the game and apologized for her snarky remark, hoping she’d be allowed to play in the semifinal. The coach, however, refused to talk to her, saying only that she would be contacted by school administrators.
The next day, Brie was summoned to a meeting with Jankowski and Vice Principal Greg Ahrens. They told her she would not be reinstated.
“Brie called me, so I went to the school, and I couldn’t believe what I was hearing,” Megan D’Elia said. “The athletic director defended the decision. He said Brie was defiant.
“And I’ll never forget what the vice principal said,” she added. “His exact words were: ‘This is my domain. You do what I say. If I tell you to stand on your head in the corner, you do it.’
“I was shocked.”
Without Brie in the lineup, Vero Beach lost the semifinal 2-0. Weeks later, Brie was still upset.
A good student who was considered a talented athlete, respected leader and dependable teammate by her peers – a player who drew raves from every other coach she had played for – Brie was deprived of competing in the biggest game of the season, all because of one indiscretion.
She talked back.
It didn’t matter that Brie had never before been formally reprimanded, or that she did not use profanity, or that she apologized for an inappropriate remark made in the heat of the moment.
Nor did it matter that the School Board’s written code of conduct precludes students being removed from activities for minor infractions, requiring that disciplinary actions be progressive and due process be afforded before the most serious sanction is imposed.
For some unknown reason, no one in charge wanted to hear Brie’s explanation or give her a second chance.
It’s no surprise, then, that the D’Elias are headed to court, or that our School Board again must waste money on outside attorneys to defend itself against a potentially ugly and embarrassing lawsuit that could have – and should have – been avoided.
The D’Elias already have collected letters from several of Brie’s former teammates who defended her and were at least somewhat critical of Dickens for an alleged lack of soccer acumen and inability to relate to players.
You can also expect Rand to dig deeply into what she described as “systemic” discrimination against Vero Beach’s female athletes.
“The male athletes, particularly football and basketball players, can yell at their coaches and argue back and forth, even use profanity, yet they aren’t removed from the team,” Megan D’Elia said. “Brie was removed from her team because she’s a strong, young woman who dared to voice her opinion to her male coach.”
Brie has moved on, recently concluding her freshman season at New York’s Fashion Institute of Technology. But she and her parents still believe that what happened here was wrong.
So, they’re suing the school district.