A longtime high school basketball coach is out of a job after allegations he spanked some of his players with his shoe.
Channel 2’s Tom Jones reported Columbia High School’s former head basketball coach, Dr. Phillip McCrary, is out of a job.
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McCrary was a legend at the school, with the gym being named after him. He won hundreds of games during his coaching career.
Video believed to have led to the end of McCrary’s employment with DeKalb County Schools was shared by a parent of a former player who is no longer at the school.
She asked not to be identified for fear of retaliation.
“When I saw the video, I was heartbroken,” she said. “I was heartbroken because we trusted this man.”
She says the video shows McCrary telling a player to lower his pants in a hotel room while the team was in the Bahamas for a tournament in November.
She says the coach then hits the player forcibly on his backside with his shoe several times.
“Then he says, ‘Why is it happening?’ And then the young man said, ‘Because I invited a girl up to the room,” the mother said.
She says another player was also hit with the shoe.
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Jones went to McCrary’s home and asked if he had a second to talk. McCrary said no. Jones asked if he had a comment but didn’t get a response.
A spokesperson for the school district said they couldn’t comment on personnel matters and said the safety of students is its highest priority.
She went on to say McCrary is no longer employed by the district as of Monday.
This mother says letting him go is the right decision.
“That’s humiliating. It’s not OK,” she said.
The mother says after her son left the school recently, he felt empowered to come forward about what happened.
She says he was in that room and the incident took a toll on his mental health.
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