'Horrified and concerned': Mom of Farmington student outraged at coach's sex assault investigation

FARMINGTON, Mich. (FOX 2) - More fallout from the sexual assault investigation involving a basketball coach at Farmington High School. The school has now fired several other coaches from the basketball program -- for knowing about the alleged behavior and not reporting it.

Farmington Public Schools did not grant an interview to FOX 2 regarding the allegations of the former coach. We then went to the school board and were referred to the superintendent but that led to a dead end as well.

"I was horrified obviously and concerned," said one mom. "I hate to say it, but I wasn’t necessarily surprised just because there has been a culture of covering things up in this district for quite a long time."

It’s the reaction of parents FOX 2 spoke with all day Tuesday. They were nervous to show their faces in the wake of the scandal.

First came bombshell allegations against the Farmington High School boy’s basketball junior varsity coach last week. The Detroit police Special Victims Unit is investigating him for sexual assaults, against his own players.

Sources say he would invite players for overnight study sessions at his Detroit home, then they’d take a terrible, sexual turn. The student-athletes were just 14 or 15 years old.

A day after FOX 2 broke this story there was more shock in the district. Three other coaches were fired for allegedly having some knowledge of these purported sexual encounters and choosing to not report them.

"These are the people that are supposed to keep our kids safe and if they’re not willing to report something as egregious as what was going on, then they have no business being in the coaching or the education field at all," the parent said.

Of those fired, varsity head coach Derrick McDowell, an illustrious coaching career in our area, and as an assistant basketball coach at Eastern Michigan and Central Michigan universities.

Related: Farmington High School assistant coaches knew about ‘sexual study parties’; three terminated

Farmington Public School’s said this in part:

"To be clear – the other coaches are not accused of improper conduct with players; rather they did not meet the required threshold as mandatory reporters to ensure the safety and well-being of student-athletes."

"When we have a situation like this, we really need to think about how it happened," the mom said. "And how we can prevent it from happening at another school, with another sport, with other coaches."

The junior varsity coach at the center of it all has been a coach for more than a decade, which could lead to offshoot investigations, outside the one underway by Detroit police.

The coach has not been named because there are no formal charges at this point. He was fired last week as soon as the school learned of the allegations. 

The district sent this statement to families and staff:

Good Evening FPS Families and Staff, You may have seen recent media coverage regarding our Farmington High School Boys’ Basketball program.  I am writing to you this evening to clarify some information.  The incident primarily involved the junior varsity coach and two students.  This incident is disturbing and a violation of the trust families place in adult leaders for their children.   Most importantly, the students and their families are doing ok and are receiving support from our Social Emotional Wellness teams. Here are the facts:All coaches were hired through our 3rd party contracted service provider, EduStaff, and had no criminal background violations. 

All coaches received training and reminders about procedures and policies, including mandatory reporter requirements.
On Monday, October 9th we received a report from a parent concerned about the JV basketball coach. The administrative team immediately began an investigation and by the end of the day, that coach was fired.  The case was turned over to Detroit Police (where the former coach lives) under suspicion of sexual behavior directed from the coach toward a couple of players.

During the week of October 9th, The FHS administration conducted an internal investigation, which included individual interviews with every member of the JV team, and the mobilization of Social Emotional Support for all players.  Additionally, they sent messages to both the basketball program families and the FHS school community.   

As a result of the investigation, they learned that the other coaches in the program were aware that several basketball players had been to the coach’s house.  FPS has no knowledge of or reporting from student interviews of parties.  However, this clear violation of the coach-student athlete relationship was not reported to administration.  On Monday, October 16th, the other three coaches were fired.  

Our Farmington School Resource Officer and building administration are actively cooperating with Detroit Police on their investigation and keeping our students and their families at the forefront of our safety, security, and support efforts here in FPS.  Although the former coach was screened and had no criminal history, we have begun conversation about possible additional steps that can be taken to onboard and monitor newly hired contracted individuals.     

The actions of this individual do not get to define what FPS stands for, the opportunities we provide for students, or the character of our more than 1200 dedicated coaches, teachers and other staff members.  There are thousands of positive interactions between students and staff that occur daily in our District in a physically and intellectually safe environment.  It is our hope that the Wayne County prosecutor will charge this individual and hold him accountable, as our students and their families deserve justice.

Sincerely,Chris Delgado SuperintendentFarmington Public Schools