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Former Players Sue Dorrance, UNC
In a 19-page lawsuit, UNC women's
soccer coach Anson Dorrance and
his staff were accused of behaving
inappropriately toward players.
By Evan Markfifld
Assistant Sports Editor
Two former North Carolina women’s soccer
players filed a lawsuit Tuesday alleging various
forms of misconduct on the part of head coach
Anson Dorrance.
The 19-page suit, leveled by former Tar Heels
Debbie Keller and Melissajennings in U.S. District
Court,, alleges that
Dorrance used his position
as head coach to make
uninvited sexual advances
toward Keller and encour
age Jennings to consume
alcohol while she was
UNC has received
other harassment
complaints this
year.
See Page 4
under the legal drinking age.
The suit also accuses assistant coach Bill
Palladino of participating with Dorrance in the
alleged sexual harassment and providing alcohol to
members of the team who were underage.
The University, Chancellor Michael Hooker,
Athletics Director Dick Baddour, several of
Dorrance’s assistant coaches and other members of
the University administration were also named as
defendants in the suit, which was filed in the
Northern District of Illinois.
Keller and Jennings are seeking $1 million each
in damages, along with $lO million in punitive
damages. The suit also calls for an injunction bar
ring Dorrance from coaching or being associated
with a program in which he would have occasion to
come into contact with female athletes or minors.
Dorrance, who has coached UNC to 14 NCAA
tides, denied the charges and said he would defend
himself and the program vigorously.
“I am shocked and saddened by these allega
tions,” Dorrance said in a prepared statement. “I
have never and would never abuse my position in
any way. I’ve respected every player I have ever
coached both as an individual and as a member of
my teams."
Baddour said the players’ charges had previous-
Bonnie Sends UNC-W Students Packing
A few out-of-state students
unable to evacuate campus
are excited about riding out
their first hurricane in style.
By Courtney Weill
State & National Editor
WILMINGTON - The campus of
UNC-Wilmington resembled a ghost
town early Tuesday evening as
Hurricane Bonnie made its way toward
the North Carolina coast
With increasing winds and stormy
clouds rolling in, only a few straggling
students could be found on campus after
the 5 p.m. mandatory evacuation.
Most students traveled back to their
hometowns or to those of their hall
mates, said Dick Scott, head of the
emergency management team on cam
pus.
Ex-players Begin Jail Sentence
An Orange County District Court judge
ordered junior Ricco McCain and sophomore
Varian Ballard to serve 10 days in jail for
failing to complete their community service.
By T. Nolan Hayes
Assistant Sports Editor
Two North Carolina football players who were dismissed
from the team last week for not fulfilling their community ser
vice requirements are now facing a different type of service
time.
Hard time. In Orange County Jail.
Junior Ricco McCain and sophomore Varian Ballard were
each sentenced Monday to serve 10 days in prison. They were
previously found guilty of assaulting UNC student David
Beyer outside Chapel Hill’s Gotham nightclub in December.
Orange County District Court Judge Joe Buckner ordered
See FOOTBALL, Page 4
ly been brought to the atten
tion of the University and the
Department of Athletics but
the subsequent investigation
did not show any misconduct
on the part of Dorrance or
members of his staff.
“The record in this matter
demonstrates that University
officials and coach Dorrance
have fully and promptly
responded to concerns
expressed by these students
and their parents,” Baddour
said.
Marcy DeFalco, the lawyer
representing Jennings and
Keller, acknowledged that the
former players each attempt
ed to work things out with
UNC officials before filing
the suit.
“The parties had been try
ing individually to resolve this
issue with the University
before seeking legal counsel,”
DeFalco said. “We’re confi
dent that the allegations we’ve
alleged will be proven in
court.”
The suit alleges that
Dorrance used his position to
coerce Keller into meeting
with him in a secluded area
and made an uninvited sexual advance towards her
in October 1996 and again in 1998. It also alleges
that in November and December of 1996,
Dorrance made inappropriate and uninvited phys
ical contact with Keller.
The suit also claims that Dorrance used his posi
tion to intimidate team members into reporting the
sexual activities of their teammates and that he
would constantly interrogate players regarding
their personal lives, including their sexual activities.
But players were strong in their defense of
Dorrance following the announcement of the suit
“I have no reason to believe that any of the alle
gations were true,” forward Cindy Parlow said. “I
See LAWSUIT, Page 4
But for the few on-campus residents
with nowhere to go, the University
Union has become a luxurious emer
gency shelter equipped with all the basic
amenities and more.
“They’re feeding us on a regular
schedule,” said Chris Parella, a fresh
man from Wayne, NJ.
“They have a generator here so
you’ve got all-night TV. They’re sup
plying mattresses, sheets, blankets. They
surprisingly even got a shower for us.”
Along with resident directors, cam
pus police, the campus emergency man
agement team and some staff volun
teers, eleven students will wait out the
storm in the center of the hurricane
doomed campus.
“Everyone will ride out the storm
here so that we can immediately take
care of all the people,” Scott said.
For a majority of the students,
See WILMINGTON, Page 4
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Former UNC football player Varian Ballard returns
to Orange County Jail after attending classes.
Wednesday, August 26, 1998
Volume 106, Issue 63
1 1 ",' J ' l ' 1 1 I '"' 1 '
tnaJK 1
Former UNC forward
Debbie Keller
accused Anson
Dorrance of sexual
harassment in the
lawsuit.
Former UNC player
Melissa Jennings
left the women's
soccer team
prior to the
1998 season.
DTO/JOHNIKEDA
UNC women's soccer head coach Anson Dorrance addresses a lawsuit filed against him.
Two former players have accused Dorrance of sexual harassment.
Bonnie Packs a Punch
SOURCE INSTITUTE OF GLOBAL ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIETY
Men argue, nature acts.
Voltaire
Hurricane
Bonnie,
as of It p.m.
Tuesday;
Top Speed: 12 knots
Coordinates:
31.6 N, 76.9 W
Eye expected to hit
land at Cape
Lookout by noon.
DTO/MELINDA GONZALEZ
Language Barrier Hard
To Break at Hospitals
UNC Hospitals employs two
interpreters who help the
medical staff communicate
with Hispanic patients.
By Robin Clemow
Staff Writer
Maria Palmer, minister of a local
Hispanic church, knew the UNC
Hospitals interpreter program had flaws
when she was asked to help translate for
a Spanish-speaking patient and his fam
ily.
Palmer was present as a doctor tried
to explain a patient’s medical situation
to a family member. The on-staff inter-
Storm Strikes Coast;
Spares Chapel Hill
With winds of 30-40 mph,
the hurricane should have
little effect on the Triangle
area, state officials predict.
By Trisha L. Dabb
State & National Editor
Coastal North Carolina sat and wait
ed for Hurricane Bonnie to make a deci
sion Tuesday night, but it was business
as usual in the Triangle.
Though Gov. Jim Hunt declared a
state of emergency at 2 p.m., officials
said it was unlikely the Raleigh-
Durham-Chapel Hill area would feel
the brunt of the storm.
“If it goes as we’re projecting now,
preter did not know how to explain the
patients condition.
“He asked me, ‘How do you say
“heat stroke” in Spanish?’” she said.
Robin Gaitens, UNC Hospitals
spokeswoman, said the system’s two
full-time interpreters work in inpatient
services and in clinic areas.
The hospital also recruits volunteer
interpreters to work in the Emergency
Department. These volunteers must
speak Spanish as their native language
or have lived in a Spanish-speaking
country for at least six months.
Palmer said although interpreters are
present and fluent in the language, dif
ficult medical vocabulary causes prob-
See HOSPITAL, Page 4
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Chapel Hill, North Carolina
C 1998 DTH Publishing Corp
All rights reserved.
Team Rallies
To Battle
Accusations
By Aaron Beard
Sports Editor
Former North Carolina women’s soc
cer player Staci Wilson left little doubt
where her allegiances lie.
In a sign of solidarity equaled only
by the on-field resolve that has won an
unprecedented 14 of the last 16 NCAA
titles, Wilson and
current Tar Heels
stood in support
of coach Anson
Dorrance after
Tuesday’s lawsuit
filed by two for
mer players accus
ing the coach of
misconduct and
sexual harass
ment
“I feel a lot of
sympathy and my
prayers go to
Anson and his
family,” Wilson
Former UNC Player
Stad Wilson
called the
accusations
'insulting' to
the program.
said. “My reaction is one of support for
my coach, my program and my school.”
The lawsuit, filed by Debbie Keller
and Melissajennings in U.S. District
Court, seeks sl2 million in damages.
But the players - current and former
alike - stand fast beside their mentor.
Members of the 1998 team attended
Tuesday’s news conference in the Hill
Ballroom South at the Carolina Inn.
With faces strained with concern and
See PLAYERS, Page 4
you’ll have these 30 to 40 mph winds,”
said Information Officer Ben Taylor at
the N.C. Division of Emergency
Management.
“That’s just near warning level,” he
said.
Taylor said compared to Hurricane
Fran, Bonnie appeared to be a dry
storm and though still unpredictable,
would most likely not carry driving
rains.
Bonnie’s outermost storms spread
into the state’s southern counties late in
the evening. Hurricane force winds
were expected by daybreak today.
The eye and most violent portions of
Hurricane Bonnie are expected to hit
land and pass over Cape Lookout late
See STORM, Page 4
Wednesday
Plenty of Protest
The University was named one of the
top 10 activists schools for the fifth
year in a row. However, a school just
down tobacco row landed the No. I
spot this year. See Page 5.
Today’s Weather
iAk\ Partly Cloudy;
High 80s
Thursday Sunny; 90
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