Brian Barrio, former University of Maryland, Baltimore County athletic director, voluntarily withdrew his lawsuit against UMBC on September 16. The suit has moved from federal court to the Howard County Circuit Court. No settlement has been approved at this time.
SwimSwam reached out to Brian Barrio’s representation at Offit Kurman, P.A. but received no comment as to the circumstances surrounding the voluntary withdrawal. Maryland’s The Daily Record also received no response from either the defendants or Brian Barrio’s legal team.
Barrio originally filed suit against UMBC on August 7 for wrongful termination occurring in March of this year, claiming he was used as the “scapegoat” for head swim coach Chad Cradock’s sexual misconduct.
On March 18, the U.S. Department of Justice found that UMBC violated Title IX by failing to address sexual abuse allegations relating to Cradock. Barrio’s position as athletic director was terminated the very next day. The lawsuit claims that “shortly before he was fired by President Sheares Ashby and UMBC, Brian reported that he had another job opportunity. President Sheares Ashby encouraged Brian to remain at UMBC and made a clear and definite promise that she would be signing an extension of his contract through 2028. In reliance on this clear and definite promise, Brian passed on the employment opportunity and remained with UMBC.”
When Barrio began his federal lawsuit in August, his complaint stated “There is little Brian will be able to do to get his career back on track at all, let alone back to where he would have been without these actions by UMBC. Scapegoated by UMBC and connected to the Cradock/UMBC debacle, Brian is unemployed, effectively unhirable, and his reputation, job prospects, and future opportunities have been forever impaired and tarnished.”
In the court documents from Barrio’s initial filing, his demands from the defendants include a declaration that the Defendants violated his rights under applicable state and federal law; awards of damages against Defendants, jointly and severally, for the violations alleged herein, including past and future wages and benefits, pre and post-judgment interest, compensatory damages, and mental anguish and emotional distress damages in an amount to be proven at trial; an award of costs and attorneys’ fees incurred in bringing this action; and more.
As Barrio’s lawsuit moves forward in state court, the other ongoing legal battle in the wake of Cradock’s egregious conduct is being pursued by six former UMBC swimmers. These individuals rejected the $4.1 million settlement offered by the Justice Department earlier this summer and are continuing to pursue their claims in court.
