Here is a case that illustrates the fact that not just any background check will do;
Eric James Hawkins, a High School soccer coach with no previous criminal background, has been relieved of his coaching duties after being charged with sexually assaulting a teenage girl. The former player claims that she was sexually assaulted by Hawkins at the age of 14.

The signs were there – if not the signs of pedophilia, perhaps the signs at least that Hawkins was a shady character.

Hawkins was banned by the Minnesota Youth Soccer Association (MYSA) at the time of the alleged assaults. There are also records of a string of soccer-related lawsuits, name changes, and what the Minneapolis Star Tribune refers to as “interleague intrigue” involving Hawkins, and quarrels with a youth league, of which he is a former coach.

Officials in the Rockford and Robbinsdale school districts, who had run background checks on the coach, say they were “stunned”.

“We did a thorough background check,” said Michael Smith, superintendent of the Rockford School District, where Hawkins coached the boys’ soccer team last fall. Smith said Hawkins “will no longer coach at Rockford High School.” The school district also took action, sending letters to the affected families of the high school boys’ soccer team, alerting them to Hawkins’ status.

All of this, experts say, would have been found with a thorough background check. Youth coaches especially should have both civil and criminal records looked into. References should be called, and previous employers should be contacted as well. It may seem like a waste of money until something like this happens.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, March 12th, 2008 at 5:32 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.