Former McKinley football coaches dismiss defamation lawsuit, intend to refile

The former Canton McKinley football coaches who have been waiting for more than a year for a chance to clear their names in court have decided to wait a while longer.

Attorney Peter Pattakos, who is representing former McKinley head coach Marcus Wattley and former assistant coaches Frank McLeod, Zachary Sweat, Romero Harris, Cade Brodie and Tyler Thatcher, notified the Stark County judge Wednesday that he was voluntarily dismissing the defamation lawsuit the coaches filed against Canton City School District leaders, a former assistant coach, a former McKinley player and the player’s father and attorney.

Other lawsuits filedEx-McKinley football player sues, alleges coaches coerced him to eat pizza against beliefs

The coaches had filed the lawsuit in July 2021 after they said their reputations had been damaged by the false accusation that they punished the then-17-year-old football player on May 24, 2021, by forcing him to eat a pepperoni pizza while knowing that it was against his religious beliefs.

The trial was set to begin Monday in Stark County Common Pleas Court.

Pattakos intends to refile the lawsuit “as soon as is practicable.” In a statement, he said the goal of the new lawsuit is to hold the school district leaders accountable for the harm they caused the coaches when they failed to fully investigate the accusations, did not inform the public truthfully and did not treat all involved parties fairly.

In the trial that was to start Monday, Stark County Common Pleas Judge Natalie Haupt had dismissed Canton City Schools Superintendent Jeff Talbert and board members John “J.R.” Rinaldi, Scott Russ, Kim Brown, David Kaminski and Eric Resnick from the case.

She ruled the alleged defamatory statements attributed to district officials either contained no false statements of facts, were opinions and judgment calls or had not been published. The decision left the player, the player’s father, Kenny Walker, attorney Edward Gilbert, and former assistant football coach Josh Grimsley as defendants.

“While we remain eager to present our claims against Mr. Gilbert and his clients to a jury and further clear the coaches’ good names, it is most important to the coaches to obtain complete justice in this matter, which requires that all responsible parties, including the (Canton City school leaders), be parties to the trial on the claims at issue,” Pattakos wrote. “We will continue to make every reasonable effort to ensure that justice is served in this case.”

Pattakos wrote the evidence collected during the discovery phase of the lawsuit revealed information that wasn't known when the lawsuit was filed in July 2021, including the admission by the player that didn’t explicitly tell the coaches about his Hebrew Israelite beliefs and that a surveillance video the district used as the basis of its internal investigation was missing a two-minute span of time. Pattakos said those two minutes of video would have shown the player shaking hands and hugging the coaches after the discipline was over. District officials have said the surveillance cameras only record when it detects movement as a way to save memory and believe the camera didn't detect movement during the two-minute gap.

Pattakos asked Judge Haupt to reinstate the district leaders as defendants in the lawsuit, but she denied the request Wednesday, in part because the trial was to start Monday.

Attorney Kathryn Perrico, who is representing the Canton City school leaders, responded to Pattakos' statement by saying, "The district maintains that the rulings issued by the court were sound and well-reasoned, and declines to respond to the self-serving and inaccurate statements presented by Peter Pattakos."

Attorney Michael J. Kahlenberg, who is representing the player and Walker, said the voluntary dismissal of a civil lawsuit is common, but, "Our pool of potential jurors deserves better. So do my clients."

Gilbert’s attorney, Stephen P. Griffin, declined comment. Grimsley's attorney, Bartholomew T. Freeze, could not be reached Thursday.

Reach Kelli at 330-580-8339 or kelli.weir@cantonrep.com.

On Twitter: @kweirREP

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Canton McKinley football coaches drop defamation case, plan to refile