Former Leechburg H.S. Coach Says Hazing Probe Was Pretext To Fire Him

LEECHBURG, Pa. (KDKA) -- A legal battle is brewing between the Leechburg Area School District and the former boys' high school basketball coach.

The lawsuit centers around turning over the report an attorney made while investigating hazing allegations for the District.

In this lawsuit, Damian Davies alleges that investigation report would shed light on why his contract was not renewed. The school district refused to turn the report over. Davies appealed to the office of open records, who denied his appeal and concluded the district does not have to disclose it. Davies is appealing the decision.

KDKA reached out to Davies and his attorney requesting comment. His attorney was unavailable and said Davies was working.

The leechburg area school district solicitor attorney Robert Cinpinski sent this statement:

This will confirm the district's receipt of attorney Lutz's appeal on behalf of Mr. Davies. The district certainly acknowledges Mr. Davies' legal right to do so, however, the district believes that the district's previous determination and the decision of the state's open-records office on appeal are appropriate.

Davies alleges two school board members with children on the team publicly and privately complained about him regarding one child's playing time and another's dismissal from the team.

Davies alleges the report has nothing to do with him and claims it was used as a way to hire a coach who would treat the board members' children more favorably.

We tried to reach those board members for comment. In the meantime, others in the community were glad to share their thoughts.

"I think that there are quite a few times where the law is written and unfortunately you can't fall in the middle. There is no gray area its black and white. The law here says he is not entitled to the documents. Of course if it was my name being brought about I would want to see the documents as well so I understand his appeal," said Rhonda Stariha of Leechburg.

"In my opinion I think the papers or whatever he wants turned over should be turned over because I believe he should find out the reason he didn't get rehired," said Abe Abranivic of Kittanning.

Others still want to know more about the hazing allegations.

"I just feel like maybe things weren't answered for everybody. Like, into detail, did these things really happen and to the extent that they said that they happened? And if they had, why were there no charges," said Michelle Trusiak of Leechburg.

Davies was the men's head basketball coach for 13 years. He is still teaching in the school district.

Join The Conversation On The KDKA Facebook Page
Stay Up To Date, Follow KDKA On Twitter