All-Star Allegations

[MyGirlCheers]

She may not have known, but no volunteer should ever have that much unsupervised access. For that, she is responsible.

Navarro also has minor high school students on the cheer team because they are taking dual credit classes there. Any time you have adults dealing with minors, you should have more oversight from those responsible - both the coach and the college have that responsibility.

 

[catlady]

If Monica even allowed a tenth of what this article claims the assistance coach was allowed to do---total access, schedules with times and dates, personal information...etc; then she is as culpable, if not more. She may love her cheerleaders, but she absolutely did not operate with their safety in mind. Not only should the school be held accountable for the actions of the volunteer, Monica should be fired without any questions asked. The excuse, "I didn't know," should never be acceptable in a situation like this.

Quote from the victim's mother... The boys had to answer to him 24/7," said the cheerleader's mother. "He had to have their schedule, so he knew exactly what classes they were in, when."

Aldama's quote... Andre McGee volunteered as a helper for the cheer team. He was never an assistant coach and never had authority over the team or cheer team members.

Seven supported McGee and said they had never witnessed any inappropriate behavior. Two back up the cheerleader's claims of hazing and sexually inappropriate behavior. The rest did not respond to the I-Team's questions.

Right now, all I believe is abuse happened by McGee and that he misrepresented himself to others claiming he was the assistant coach. As far as mom and Aldama, I don't think either one are great sources to provide non-biased information. They will eventually get enough cheerleaders to determine how many were aware he was just a volunteer, how much control he had over the team, them as individuals, and how much, if any, personal info they had to give him.

 

[ScottyB]

Anyone notice the article doxxed the victim by naming his mom? Very weird for a major affiliate like CBS to bloop like that.

 

[OldskoolKYcheercoach]

When you're on the 5 year plan at Juco.....
I won't reserve judgement on the head coach, but unfortunately whether she knew of the allegations or not, if in fact she had a volunteer represent the program as an employee that could be a problem in itself. And the fact the allegations were reported in March and nothing was done is

It will be interesting to see how this plays out. If two have already come forward, there are likely others who will.

People are quick to judge the amount of time it takes for “something to be done.”

You cannot just make accusations and expect there to be instant gratification. There has to be some kind of substantial evidence. He said/she said, is hearsay, not evidence. You start firing people or making official statements that they’ve done something wrong without evidence, and in some states they can sue you.

I personally know of a football coach who was rumored to have been sleeping with students for 20+ years before a kid came forward with social media information that was solid enough to support an investigation. Then it took six months to put the pieces together, get the necessary documents from the court for a sting operation, get the warrants for his electronic devices, convince Apple to put a rush on downloading the encrypted data from his iPad and his iPhone, and secure the arrest and conviction.

I had the inside track on this one because he was the football coach at my old high school and I heard the rumors every day back then, and then 18 years later, my younger brother was the lead investigator that put him away.

 

[oncecoolcoachnowmom]

Quote from the victim's mother... The boys had to answer to him 24/7," said the cheerleader's mother. "He had to have their schedule, so he knew exactly what classes they were in, when."

Aldama's quote... Andre McGee volunteered as a helper for the cheer team. He was never an assistant coach and never had authority over the team or cheer team members.

Seven supported McGee and said they had never witnessed any inappropriate behavior. Two back up the cheerleader's claims of hazing and sexually inappropriate behavior. The rest did not respond to the I-Team's questions.

Right now, all I believe is abuse happened by McGee and that he misrepresented himself to others claiming he was the assistant coach. As far as mom and Aldama, I don't think either one are great sources to provide non-biased information. They will eventually get enough cheerleaders to determine how many were aware he was just a volunteer, how much control he had over the team, them as individuals, and how much, if any, personal info they had to give him.

This part.

I'm not saying she directly abused or participated as a coach, but I'm always curious to know the "What did they know and when did they know it?" because nothing occurs in complete isolation from someone who is running a program.

That is why it is really hard for them to hold up under the "I didn't know excuse" because even if you did not know, the follow up question is "WHY NOT?"

1. Did you kind of "check out" at some point and trust this person to do x, y, z?

2. Were you just super naive and trusted Billy Bob to have this kind of access?

3. Were you so focused on some other aspect of your program that the well-being of your kids became the background?

Even if any of the above are true, there's a problem. Because you may not be the perpetrator but when it all begins to fall like a house of cards, the parents are not going to look at the perp (at least not for long.) They're going to go up the ladder and start asking "How could you let this happen?" and "I did not know" is not going to satisfy them.

 

[oncecoolcoachnowmom]

People are quick to judge the amount of time it takes for “something to be done.”

You cannot just make accusations and expect there to be instant gratification. There has to be some kind of substantial evidence. He said/she said, is hearsay, not evidence. You start firing people or making official statements that they’ve done something wrong without evidence, and in some states they can sue you.

I personally know of a football coach who was rumored to have been sleeping with students for 20+ years before a kid came forward with social media information that was solid enough to support an investigation. Then it took six months to put the pieces together, get the necessary documents from the court for a sting operation, get the warrants for his electronic devices, convince Apple to put a rush on downloading the encrypted data from his iPad and his iPhone, and secure the arrest and conviction.

I had the inside track on this one because he was the football coach at my old high school and I heard the rumors every day back then, and then 18 years later, my younger brother was the lead investigator that put him away.

Similar situation, but we smelled the "smoke" of issues with a girls basketball coach at one of the middle schools before we saw the fire (two middle school girls broke out into a fight in the halls over this man because he was abusing BOTH and the other found out, then they shared with the AP what had been going on, the texts, etc.) But when dealing with a professional union, the district had to move very carefully.

 

[njallday]

I hope the victim(s) have strong support systems, because the few tweets I've seen from former athletes are not kind as they seem to be taking it as an attack on their beloved team/coach. It takes a tremendous amount of strength and courage to report those things, and unfortunately people who you previously may have thought of as trusted friends are in denial and will ostracize you.

People are quick to judge the amount of time it takes for “something to be done.”

You cannot just make accusations and expect there to be instant gratification. There has to be some kind of substantial evidence. He said/she said, is hearsay, not evidence. You start firing people or making official statements that they’ve done something wrong without evidence, and in some states they can sue you.

I personally know of a football coach who was rumored to have been sleeping with students for 20+ years before a kid came forward with social media information that was solid enough to support an investigation. Then it took six months to put the pieces together, get the necessary documents from the court for a sting operation, get the warrants for his electronic devices, convince Apple to put a rush on downloading the encrypted data from his iPad and his iPhone, and secure the arrest and conviction.

I had the inside track on this one because he was the football coach at my old high school and I heard the rumors every day back then, and then 18 years later, my younger brother was the lead investigator that put him away.

Except he wouldn't have had to have been fired. He's a volunteer with no contract or monetary compensation from the school. Unfortunately that will give the school an out in this investigation that they had "no idea" he was with the cheer team.

 

[cupieqt]

I hope the victim(s) have strong support systems, because the few tweets I've seen from former athletes are not kind as they seem to be taking it as an attack on their beloved team/coach. It takes a tremendous amount of strength and courage to report those things, and unfortunately people who you previously may have thought of as trusted friends are in denial and will ostracize you.......

This is exactly what causes people to NOT report. I personally know of two cases that went unreported and only handled “internally” so as not to cause the victims any “further embarrassment or grief”. No criminal charges were ever filed.

Happened many years ago. And yes those coaches still coach.

 

[quietmom]

There needs to be a full investigation before I cast blame on the coach or not blame the coach. Remember that many of these predators groom their victims, their families, and people around them so they can get access to do the hideous things they do. This coach may have fallen prey to this grooming behavior. Sexual predators are really good at manipulating the people around them.

 

[quietmom]

This is exactly what causes people to NOT report. I personally know of two cases that went unreported and only handled “internally” so as not to cause the victims any “further embarrassment or grief”. No criminal charges were ever filed.

Happened many years ago. And yes those coaches still coach.

Sadly, these people may be victims themselves but afraid to speak up or groomed by this monster to think that everything was fine and that the victims are to blame.

 

[ScottyB]

Happened many years ago. And yes those coaches still coach.

This right here worries me about cheer. This happens a lot.
And after the stuff we just saw with USA Gymnastics, makes me sad if people aren't protecting kids properly

 

[cupieqt]

This right here worries me about cheer. This happens a lot.
And after the stuff we just saw with USA Gymnastics, makes me sad if people aren't protecting kids properly

Me too.

I really hope the USASF, Varsity and all gym owners, coaches and anyone else involved our sport is paying attention. Covering things up, sweeping them under the rug, turning a blind eye or otherwise doing nothing, is enabling this abhorrent behavior.

 

[quietmom]

Me too.

I really hope the USASF, Varsity and all gym owners, coaches and anyone else involved our sport is paying attention. Covering things up, sweeping them under the rug, turning a blind eye or otherwise doing nothing, is enabling this abhorrent behavior.

I am not going to name names because this coach is no longer a coach. However, I have seen questionable behavior out of coaches. When you are hanging out at 2 a.m. in the Walmart parking lot shooting Vine videos and drinking with your underaged athletes, there's a problem. In no way am I accusing this coach of inappropriate sexual behavior with their athletes. However, the behavior that that coach is exhibiting, can make them other vulnerable to accusations or put them in a very awkward situation. When a coach brags about how he visits his athletes after they graduate at Hooters, there's a problem. Again, I am not accusing this coach of inappropriate sexual behavior. However, the behavior that they are exhibiting does put them at risk for problems. While I am not going to hold my breath, I would love to see the industry (particularly the usasf) have some more clear guidelines on appropriate coach / athlete behavior. Let's be honest, there are so many stories of inappropriate behavior at Worlds, NCA, UCA, and cheersport. The thing is, it is normalized, overlooked, and brushed under the rug. For whatever motivation people have, no one wants to talk about it. The only time that any of this climate will change, is when stakeholders meaning (the people who pay) demand it. Otherwise, it will be business as usual

 

[oncecoolcoachnowmom]

I am not going to name names because this coach is no longer a coach. However, I have seen questionable behavior out of coaches. When you are hanging out at 2 a.m. in the Walmart parking lot shooting Vine videos and drinking with your underaged athletes, there's a problem. In no way am I accusing this coach of inappropriate sexual behavior with their athletes. However, the behavior that that coach is exhibiting, can make them other vulnerable to accusations or put them in a very awkward situation. When a coach brags about how he visits his athletes after they graduate at Hooters, there's a problem. Again, I am not accusing this coach of inappropriate sexual behavior. However, the behavior that they are exhibiting does put them at risk for problems. While I am not going to hold my breath, I would love to see the industry (particularly the usasf) have some more clear guidelines on appropriate coach / athlete behavior. Let's be honest, there are so many stories of inappropriate behavior at Worlds, NCA, UCA, and cheersport. The thing is, it is normalized, overlooked, and brushed under the rug. For whatever motivation people have, no one wants to talk about it. The only time that any of this climate will change, is when stakeholders meaning (the people who pay) demand it. Otherwise, it will be business as usual

I'll repeat the same thing I say every year.

Not going to happen until someone dies.

And even then I'm not sure.

 

[coachrah]

Her statement definitely shows she was caught off guard by these allegations.
What gets me is she had the gall to say this:
"As cheer team members know, I have a zero tolerance policy toward unlawful drug and alcohol use and have disciplined students for violating that policy."

Cmon...

P

There needs to be a full investigation before I cast blame on the coach or not blame the coach. Remember that many of these predators groom their victims, their families, and people around them so they can get access to do the hideous things they do. This coach may have fallen prey to this grooming behavior. Sexual predators are really good at manipulating the people around them.

Me too.

I really hope the USASF, Varsity and all gym owners, coaches and anyone else involved our sport is paying attention. Covering things up, sweeping them under the rug, turning a blind eye or otherwise doing nothing, is enabling this abhorrent behavior.

I think they must know... At least by his profile.