AUGUSTA – A former basketball coach is suing a Jay High School athletic director in a civil lawsuit alleging he defamed him and interfered with his occupation and prospective employment relationships.
Daniel Bates, an attorney for Thomas Maines of Fairfield, a former Madison High School boys’ basketball coach and SAD 59 assistant principal, filed the suit against Jay High School Assistant Principal and Athletic Director Kenric Charles on Dec. 2, 2005, in Kennebec County Superior Court in Augusta.
The allegations in the five-count suit relate to a letter Charles sent to SAD 59 officials informing them of Maines’ alleged poor sportsmanship prior to and after a basketball game on Dec. 8, 2003, between the two high school varsity teams. Charles also shared the letter with several athletic directors during a meeting, according to court documents.
Maines’ complaint states that Charles’ letter “falsely betrayed” him as “rude,” “disrespectful” and “conducting himself in a manner exhibiting bad sportsmanship” and as an “embarrassment to himself, Madison High School and the game of high school basketball.”
Maines claims numerous statements made in the letter were false, malicious and made to injure Maines, his character and reputation.
Maines is asking the court for damages including compensatory, punitive, emotional distress, lost future wages and salary, mental suffering, humiliation, embarrassment, harm to reputation and loss of social standing.
Charles denied all allegations through documents filed with the court by his attorneys, Bryan Dench and Marc Frenette, on Dec. 23, 2005. They asked the court to dismiss the complaint, for a number of reasons including Charles being immune from liability under the Maine Tort Claims Act and his comments protected under the Constitution. Charles asked the court to award him his costs, attorney fees and other relief.
The incident in question started after Maines declined to give his starting lineup when Charles asked for it during a junior varsity game. Instead he said they would be given 10 minutes before game tipoff as allowed. Maines also moved some team chairs that Charles had set out, so that his coach’s seat was in front of the coaching box, which he claims is allowed under rules.
However, in Charles’ letter to SAD 59 officials about Maines’ conduct, Charles wrote that according to the rule book, the location of each team’s bench shall be designated by game management.
“At Jay High School I am the game management, not Tom Maines,” Charles wrote in the letter.
Maines’ suit claims the game was played without untoward conduct on his part and that the referees didn’t call any technical fouls on him or give him any warnings. He also alleges Charles verbally attacked him.
Charles stated in his letter that Maines became irrational after he spoke to him about moving the chairs and Maines yelled at him in an inappropriate manner.
When Charles approached Maines after the game, according to the letter, Charles told him he didn’t appreciate his actions and that because of the way he acted, it was “no wonder he hasn’t gotten a job as a principal or superintendent anywhere in the state.”
Charles’ letter states that Maines tried to harass him and that Maines’ supervisor called to apologize to him for Maines’ conduct.
Both men’s attorneys were not available for comment Wednesday.
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