Coach charged in death of football player

Mr. David Stinson, head coach for the Pleasure Ridge Park H.S. football team, was charged this past Thursday for reckless homicide in the death of a player at summer practice.  Mr. Stinson asked the Jefferson County Commonwealth's Attorney to speak to the grand jury but his request was denied.  The only person who testified before the grand jury was a Louisville Metro Police detective.

Mr. Gilpin was taking Adderall at the time of his death and had been taking creatine - though he may have stopped taking it before his death.

On the afternoon of August 20, while the heat index hovered in the mid-90's, Max Gilpin, an offensive lineman, collapsed.  He was taken to the hospital with a body temperature of  107 degrees.  He died three days later.  Coaches allegedly refused to allow players to take water breaks during practice.  According to a deposition given by the school's athletic director, Mr. Craig Webb, Mr. Gilpin was on the ground for 10-15 minutes before anyone attended to him.

According to reports, a second player also collapsed and spent two days in the hospital.

According to Kentucky law, a person is guilty of reckless homicide, a Class D felony (carrying a range of 1-5 years in prison), if he causes, by his recklessness, the death of another.  Said the Commonwealth's Attorney, "a reasonable man should have realized that something like this could have occurred."  Interestingly enough, none of the five assistant coaches on the field at the time of Mr. Gilpin's collapse were charged.

Earlier this month I posted an article about assigning criminal liability to bad business decisions. Could this case set a precedent and expose all coaches to criminal liability when something goes horribly wrong at practice or in a game? Texas has always been famous for working football players hard during the summer so that they'll be ready to compete in the fall -- you haven't forgotten about Bear Bryant's Junction Boys? While in law school it was not unusual for me to come home from work and run 5 miles in 90 and 100 degree temperatures before going to class. Have the increased use of prescription pharmaceuticals, over the counter medicines and supplements made us more vulnerable to the heat? 

Only time will tell if Mr. Gilpin's death was a tragic accident or a death that could have been prevented.

See also:

• Article from the Lexington Herald-Leader.
  
• Article from the Louisville Courier-Journal.
  
• Article from the Boston Herald.
• Wall Street Journal Law Blog.