Bellevue High parents file complaint with US Dept. of Justice

BELLEVUE, Wash. — Bellevue High School's legendary head coach spoke publicly about the investigation of his football program Thursday night, and he called the WIAA probe of his program "unfair."

Butch Goncharoff, who has won 11 state championships, was clearly angry as he spoke to a crowd of supporters at the Bellevue Hyatt. "These are high school kids," he said. "For the last 15 months, they have been under siege! For what?"

Goncharoff suggested the investigation into possible corruption in his program is unwarranted, unethical, and based on false assumptions.

"We hear it all the time," Goncharoff said. "Nobody wins games like you guys do, how do you do it? There's got to be a reason! Yeah, for the last time, we work harder than you!" he said. "It's just that simple, we work harder than you. Give these kids some (expletive) credit!"

Bellevue parents who say they were targeted by WIAA investigators say they've lodged a complaint with the U.S. Department of Justice, saying they were harassed, intimidated, and bullied because of their race.

"They contacted my landlord and questioned whether I lived (in) my own residence and asked if we paid our own rent," said Mike Rogers, the father of a Bellevue student-athlete. "I work, my wife works, we make pretty decent money. I mean, this is America, right? I can live anywhere I want to live.''

The WIAA's 68-page reports on its' investigation won't be released until Tuesday, but in a release last week the WIAA said coaches directed some players to take classes at the private Academic Institute and suggested boosters paid for the players' tuition. They also cite allegations that some players used false addresses to be eligible to play for Bellevue High.

"This is a racist investigation," said Marissa Spooner-LeDuff, the guardian of a Bellevue transfer. "It's racist because you don't ask a black person how they can afford to live somewhere, and not ask my white counterpart!"

Cox Media Group