One of swimming’s most celebrated coaches, Mark Schubert, is being sued for wrongful termination by a former employee, Coach Dia Rianda, in Orange County, California.  The lawsuit alleges Rianda was fired because she continually alerted Schubert to “inappropriate behavior” by William (Bill) Jewell, a “volunteer assistant” at Golden West Swim Club (GWSC) – where Schubert is currently the head coach after serving a stint as the USA Swimming National Team Director.
The complaint is layered with additional allegations. Many of the coaches named have ties to some of the biggest names in coaching and their allegeded inappropriate behavior, Sean Hutchison of FAST, and Rick Curl of Curl Burke (now CUBU). Hutchison, who headed the Elite Training Program at FAST, has been cleared of any wrong doing by USA Swimming. Curl, who is alleged to have sexually abused Kelley Davies (now Currin) in the 1980s, is under investigation by USA Swimming. Curl’s hearing is set for September 19th.
The complaint is set to be filed by attorney Robert Allard, the same attorney who is representing Currin in her case, and the Golden West Swim Club and Mark Schubert are named as defendants.
Tim Joyce of WBAL broke this story, and according to his report, “Rianda claims that Schubert, on three separate occasions, tearfully told her that he could have done more for Currin but didn’t.”  Schubert coached Kelley Currin at the University of Texas, and, according to Rianda,  Currin told Schubert what Curl had done to her.  Later, when Schubert was the USA Swimming National Team Director, he “made it known to Rianda that he did tell Chuck Wielgus and others at USA Swimming headquarters about Curl’s abusive behavior.”Â
While USA Swimming is still reviewing the documents, they did release the following through a spokesperson: “USA Swimming cannot comment on ongoing investigations. However, as a matter of process, when USA Swimming initiates a coach investigation, it immediately notifies the employing club. As per the Amateur Sports Act, membership status cannot be affected without the opportunity for a hearing. Employment decisions during investigations are at the discretion of the employing club.”
For a simple wrongful termination case, this suit is rife with accusations, and it’s the broader sex abuse scandal plaguing USA Swimming and the central players involved that continues to generate headlines. The case seems to serve to tie together many of the major stories related to sexual abuse and swimming in the last two years, even though the common thread is through an employment lawsuit.
Rianda was simply concerned about assistant coach Jewell’s behavior toward female swimmers. She claims that she brought to Schubert’s attention over and over, and that Schubert’s reaction was to fire her. But Jewell is more than an assistant coach. During Hutchison’s tenure at Fullerton Aquatics, Jewell was the CEO of FAST.  This program was the west coast training program for USA Swimming’s elite post graduates.  In sum, Jewell is a carreer coach, aquatics director, and a pillar of the community.
Rianda is also a well-respected coach and a generous philanthropist who has donated more than $100,000 to the USA Swimming Foundation. Whatever the outcome of this suit, the names and allegations involved will rock the foundation of the sport: either to the affirmative for the athlete safety initiatives, or to the negative.
What an amazing blog! So many assumptions, so many implications, so much piss and vinagar, so few actual facts. It will be very interesting to see what actually comes of this case. But there are two truths which will remain regardless of the outcome…Mark Schubert has a long history of being a manipulative prick, and Bill Jewell has a long history of being a creep. Whether either of them engaged in illegal activity remains to be seen, but it’s interesting that by proxy USA Swimming seems to have more on the line here than either of these individuals.
Well, Mark got his start in swimming because Flip Darr left age group swimming around 1973 and Flip Darr coach later at the early days of Nova. Mark got Shirley Bashashoff, Peggy Tosdel and other national level swimmers from Darr’s Huntington Beach club. If Flip Darr didn’t quit at the time then Mark would not have been the famous coach he was only Brian Goodell started on Mission Viejo in the early years of Mark’s career. Also, Long Beach pick up the Furness brothers-Bruce and Steve at the same time.
News flash…it’s 2012!! Schubert has had a few accomplishments since 1973.
Brian,
I am not trying to offend you or anyone else. I am going to ask a few rational questions. I hope you will take them as such.
Do you know Bob Allard’s compensation?
Would working pro bono make him a better person? Does working for pay make someone a worse person? Do you work pro bono? Always?
If Allard has been paid, does that make him a bad person? If so, what does that say about Chuck Wielgus making $750,000+ a year?
Should Allard hide that he won the California Lawyer of the Year award? Should he state that he is just an average lawyer? Even if that is not true?
If Allard is out of bounds for acknowledging… Read more »
I will throw out a couple answers, I would go through them more thoroughly (when I have a little more time).
1) I won’t pretend I know Allard’s compensation. What I can guarantee, however, is that he will get a pretty penny on his behalf.
2) Doing this pro bono, would make him a better person (in my eyes). I would never suggest that I would always work pro bono, since there wouldn’t ever be any way to really profit.
3) Being paid doesn’t make him a bad person. It’s his repeated efforts to profit from the situation and take advantage of it for his own personal gain.
4) And I have no problem recognizing your… Read more »
Brian,
You obviously have a huge problem with Bob Allard or are using him as a focus for the damage the USA Swimming sex abuse problems are doing to your own self-image. I can’t help you with that.
With your admission that you don’t know the facts, we must assume that your reaction is based on supposition or emotion. If that is the case, argument would be pointless. I must simply say “I disagree.”
I appreciate your attempt to answer the questions I posed. They were intended as rhetorical and thought provoking. This was not an attempt at debate. That said, you responded only to the parts of the questions that related directly to Bob Allard while avoiding entirely… Read more »
I have come away with one conclusion, and I base this on the central goal of justice for all concerned: Allard is a very corrupt man.
And “Splash of Truth” has a personal agenda against USA Swimming!! Hope I don’t know him…..may never know since he is afraid to give his name!!
Concerned,
It may be just the opposite. Bob Allard may be the person with the best of intentions.
Chuck Wielgus when asked under oath if USA Swimming had ever sought out the other victims of banned coaches gave an answer very similar to his ABC broadcast “You think I should apologize?”
Helping victims achieve justice through an open legal process with documented evidence is exactly how it should be done. The fines for legal chicanery have all been levied against USA Swimming’s lawyers.
Make up your own mind, but consider the facts, not just the emotional view of what we want USA Swimming to be.
Judge with objectivity based on reality.
If you want to judge objectively, you can look at Allard, his bio touting his “lawyer of the year” due to his heroic battle against several other attorneys who were prone to all sorts of intimidation, harassment, etc.
Allard has his cash cow. He’s going to systematically keep reaping it to get the money that goes to him. He sees an easy target and he’ll go for it.
He wants to show that he’s all about the victim and justice? Do it pro bono.
I don’t care what happens to USA Swimming, I have no vested interest in the long term. Though I have seen many changes implemented for the better throughout my years as a swimmer… Read more »
Our theory is that with the Schubert lawsuit, USA Swimming’s “royal family” is sh*tting the bed right now. Schubert has the goods on Wielgus and USA Swimming and is going to talk one way or another. It could be in a deposition or as a settlement of his own lawsuit that was filed against him by Allard’s client. Insiders are telling us that if, or when, this happens, Chuck is going to have no choice but to resign.
Don’t know about that. I don’t recall, I don’t recall, I don’t recall – I never said such a thing – etc., etc., etc., – Allard is funny.
Any idea how much that settlement will cost?
A member of the USAS Board told us that USAS settled with Andy King’s victim for 2.4 million dollars and spent double that on attorney fees to Jane Weil. Weil was then released because she exceeded the USSIC coverage and they have new representation and are into a higher level of insurance with another company.
Our theory on Schubert’s lawsuit is that his exposure will be very minimal if he talks and spills the beans on USA Swimming. If you look at this lawsuit against Schubert and connect the dots, the results could be most damaging to USA Swimming and they aren’t a named party. One way or another, what went on inside USA Swimming is going to come out… Read more »
I was at USAS and can attest to the insurance coverage. The financial report for the quad showed the cost skyrocketing. I don’t have the numbers in front of me, but doubling was the least that happened.
COACHERIK, If you have any info, please sent it to us at [email protected]. We have some info on our own and it looks downright scary. USA Swimming has already secretly cut a great deal of coverages and lowered payouts that were offered just two years ago. We are paying for the sins of Wielgus and the USAS board, while they’re getting raises and more perks! They are manipulating, scamming and preying off people that love the sport…
Question:
Whatever happened to all the talk about the NDA signed by Currin and her family? For attorneys, even if you feel for the alleged victim, you want to strike at where there is weakness in a proceeding.
How can one just blatantly violate an NDA and go on with it? What would be the point of even signing them in the first place, if someone can just up and break it at their own volition?
I just have a question on that, not on other aspects of the case.
Correct me of I am wrong (and I am sure someone will) but a NDA is not binding if it was used to cover up an illegal act and unless things have changed, a thirty year old raping a 14 year old is an illegal act.
But I mean, obviously it was done in a court of law, so why would it even be done in the first place? It sounds like taking a settlement offer and the NDA is binding as such that the recipient of the settlement would not make any public accusations.
It happens in sexual harassment lawsuits here and there, but I’m curious, because this case seems to throw it all out the window.
What makes you think the NDA was something done in court? I would assume it was an out of court settlement.
An NDA is a legal document. To have validity it would have to be done in court. Not to mention it was done in return for a monetary settlement…in court. If the information is right.
Brian – I actually can attest to your prior statement, as I have spent a good deal of time working with contracts. Non-disclosure agreements are just that – agreements or contracts. They do not have to be done in court. I have administered many NDA’s that never went before the court. Like any other contract between private parties, they don’t have to go before the court until one party believes that the other has violated the contents thereof.
Hope that helps clear up that question.
“Rianda is also a well-respected coach and a generous philanthropist who has donated more than $100,000 to the USA Swimming Foundation.”
Well respected by whom???
Can we take a step back here with all this cover up payment accusations? I am not saying there was or was NOT a cover up by USA Swimming. However, in most every reasonably sized organziation, when a senior executive gets fired, it usually comes with a severence package as well as the need to sign non-disclosure agreements and not discuss certain senstive topics in public. This is normal. Let’s see how this plays out before we hang anyone.