A U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) investigation into the University of Maryland in Baltimore County found that school officials failed to address sexual abuse allegations made by members of the swimming and diving teams against their coaches. There was found.
The Department of Justice announced the results of an investigation into allegations that Chad Craddock, former head coach of the school’s swimming and diving team, sexually harassed male student-athletes as well as discriminated against female student-athletes.
In a letter dated March 18, 2024, the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division told university officials that their failure to respond to allegations of sex discrimination violated Title IX of the Education Reform Act of 1972. Not responding also showed the power and power of the former head coach. They prey on student-athletes’ weaknesses while being abusive over several years.
“We do not tolerate sexual harassment and abuse of student-athletes on our nation’s college campuses,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clark of the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division. He knew what he was.” “The Department of Justice will continue to keep our promise to our nation’s universities to educate students free from sexual harassment and discrimination. Our nation’s young people deserve nothing less. We will continue to stand by victims of sexual harassment. ‘We stand by our side and work to ensure schools take action’ to protect students from this type of humiliating and painful discrimination and abuse. ”
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Chad Craddock, the swimming and diving coach at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, is at the center of sexual misconduct allegations. (University of Maryland website)
In a letter to the university, the Department of Justice said it began its investigation in November 2020 after receiving allegations that the school was not responding to reports from students and was not complying with Title IX.
“During that review, the department received allegations that former head coach of the university’s men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams, Chad Craddock, sexually abused and discriminated against student-athletes. “The university was aware of this sex discrimination and failed to respond appropriately,” the Justice Department wrote. “The department has expanded its investigation to include these allegations.”
Investigators found that the head coach held the position for about 20 years and coached more than 400 student-athletes. He also oversaw things like a youth swim club and various swim camps, eventually building and maintaining relationships with university officials, earning him the nickname “Mr. UMBC.”
The coach allegedly held sleepovers with students at his home, paid for private meals and haircuts, and developed close personal relationships with male student-athletes who he later hired and moved into his home.
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The Department of Justice has found that the University of Maryland, Baltimore County did not properly handle allegations of sexual assault and misconduct by employees. (Google Maps)
The Ministry of Justice analyzed the findings separately for men’s and women’s teams.
Regarding the men’s team, the Department of Justice learned that several male student-athletes were sexually abused and assaulted by their head coach from 2015 to 2020.
“Students’ experiences on swimming and diving teams include coaches routinely harassing male student-athletes with unwanted sexual advances, in plain view, and typically while wearing nothing but a speedo.” “It described an overly sexual environment that led to touching, inappropriate sexual conduct, comments, and other sexual misconduct,” the Justice Department wrote. “The head coach kissed the male student-athlete’s neck, hugged him from behind, ran his fingers down his naked stomach from his navel to his genitals, and massaged his bare skin.”
On June 29, 2015, staff received a letter from unidentified students regarding coaches and staff using lockers while looking into the men’s showers, stating, “I witnessed students taking electronic devices (cameras) out of their lockers.” “It has been done,” he added. . ”
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Image of competition pool installation (St. Petersburg)
According to university records, an athletic department employee shared the letter with five other employees, two of whom took the head coach’s backpack from his locker and placed it on his desk before calling university police. It is said that it was placed in Three days later, university police inspected the locker, which was empty at the time.
A university administrator told the Justice Department that he and a senior administrator learned of the allegations and went to the head coach to warn him of the planned locker search.
When officers returned on July 6, 2015, they found no camera in the locker and the investigation was closed.
“Despite these allegations of voyeurism, the university has not taken any further steps to investigate, prevent head coaches from using locker rooms with students, or otherwise ensure the safety of students.” “No action was taken,” the Justice Department wrote, adding that no one alerted the Title IX Coordinator. Suspicion.
A survey of women’s teams found that from 2016 to 2020, female student-athletes also experienced disadvantageous environments based on their gender.
According to the report, male students sometimes physically sexually harassed female students and exposed their genitals during practice.
One student told investigators that the coaches knew everything, including who he was sleeping with and what he was eating.
This environment is said to have contributed to mental health issues such as eating disorders and anxiety, and when head coaches were consulted by female student-athletes about these issues, they did not “respond to their mental health needs.” “I did almost nothing for it.”
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The Justice Department also uncovered a pattern of dating violence and multiple sexual assaults by male student-athletes against female student-athletes, and admitted that one of its employees knew about these encounters, but that the official He said he took no action and instead said: I didn’t know that I was a commissioned reporter. ”
In the winter of 2019, head coaches and athletics staff were made aware of incidents of dating violence by male student-athletes against female athletes, but did not report them to the Title IX office.
“The head coach did not report this to the Title IX office. Instead, he required a female student-athlete with bruises and other physical evidence of a violent assault to return to practice with her abuser,” the judiciary said. the ministry wrote. “This sent a frightening yet inspiring message to the other female student-athletes on the team. As one student put it, ‘I would rather let a woman die than indict one of my favorites. It became clear that it was better.’
The head coach was placed on administrative leave by the university and banned from campus pending a Title IX investigation, but was ultimately allowed to retire in December 2020.
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But in March 2021, just five days after receiving notice of the charges, the head coach died by suicide, according to the Department of Justice.
The University of Maryland, Baltimore did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment on the Justice Department report.
“Our investigation revealed that a persistent sex-based and hostile environment in athletics departments impacts many student-athletes, both male and female,” the Justice Department wrote. . “But what we do know is that the students who came forward to tell us, despite being discouraged by their coaches and belittled by their teammates, whose experiences were detailed in their university documents. These students’ experiences reveal that the university’s response to allegations of sex discrimination, which have been going on for years, has serious system-wide consequences. There was a problem.”
