Hoops Player Says College Coach Raped Her

MUSKOGEE (CN) - Carl Albert State College's assistant basketball coach raped a player who was then forced to leave school because of death threats from other players upset that the coach was fired, according to a suit in Federal Court.

The plaintiff claims assistant coach Jack Washington raped her after a party during which Washington gave her an alcoholic drink that made her feel "funny." She claims the college gave Washington access to her by providing him with a dorm room, where he raped her. "Washington told [the plaintiff] that they would both be in trouble if she told anyone," the complaint states.

She did report the rape, she says, and shortly afterward, "Washington was fired for drinking alcohol with students. Washington told some students that he had been fired, causing them to become very angry at [the plaintiff]."

She says she had to call campus police and the campus housing director to protect herself from multiple threats from other members of the team. She claims the housing director told her that she could not guarantee her safety. And she claims that a fellow player sent her a text message warning that other members of the team "still 'want to kill you.'"

She says she sought and obtained a protective court order, and that during the hearing in which she obtained it, faculty members and employees of the college "continually expressed their disgust and displeasure with [the plaintiff] and her mother, shaking their heads and making comments that this just wasn't right."

She says she had to withdraw from school, lost her scholarship, lost a year of education and suffered emotionally and physically.

Represented by Phyllis Walta of Hennessey, Okla., she demands punitive damages.

Also named as defendants are head coach Jeff Tadtman, college vice president Phyllis Philippart, athletic director Mike St. John, and the State of Oklahoma, through the Carl Albert State College Board of Regents.

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