Ankle Bracelet and THSCA Code Of Ethics

[cloudofdust]

In the March 2004 Coaches magazine the Code of Ethics for THSCA was listed. Article IX Management of Felony Crime is listed as follows:
It will be considered a breach of the Code of Ethics to willingly allow a student/athlete who is charged with and under indictment for a felony crime to participate in an athletic contest. This action should not be considered a presumption of guilt, but rather it affords the accused athlete the time and opportunity to clear his name. The student/athlete may be allowed to remain on his athletic team as a suspended member, but should not be allowed to represent his school or community in an athletic contest while under his suspension.

Sounds like to me that he shouldn't even be out on the field if he is suspended. If he is allowed to be on the field the Coach is violating the THSCA Code of Ethics and he should be suspended from coaching as well as the athlete!

[dragonsdaddy]

the thsca doesn't enforce their code of ethics. they are merely guidelines from which each coach can draw guidance.

[cloudofdust]

It's a shame they don't in this instance.

[lonny23]

the thsca doesn't enforce their code of ethics. they are merely guidelines from which each coach can draw guidance.
That's the problem with this country. We can all live according to our own rules and own ethics.

[LoneRocket]

the thsca doesn't enforce their code of ethics. they are merely guidelines from which each coach can draw guidance.
The THSCA is more like a club they can not enforce their rules on anyone. They can threaten to kick the coach out of the club, but that is about it. Even if the coach did not want him on the team, the player has the support of the AD, Principal and the Superintendent.

[dragonsdaddy]

it would be tough to stand up to the pressure from your superiors, but he must not be against it or he isn't filled with much in the way of strength of character. he would get plenty of support from the rank and file as evidenced here.

[PackAttack2005]

Are you saying the THSCA is sort of like the United Nations? They don't enforce anything either.

[Hornified64]

It's NOT just the code of ethics being violated here BUT the
athlete in question has transferred for the purpose of athletic
competition.

At his prior school district...he would've been able to attend an
alternative campus but not permitted to play for his prior team.

It would seem to me that he has several hurdles to clear to even
be ELIGIBLE....at his new school.

[relraiderfan]

I'm sorry, but can anyone please give more details to what ya'll are referring too. I am lost in this thread.

[dragonsdaddy]

try this link
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/081005dnspohslancaster.1266ac7f.html

[Favpack]

Please remind me to never root for Lancaster again as long as this coach is around.

[PACK '97]

I second that...that's ridiculous

[pack98]

Everyone in life deserves second chances. without second chances then why are we americans why do we fight for our freedom. I am in the navy so i do it every day the kid made a great mistake but he is young and has his life infront of him and let the jury punish him. Second chances is what makes america work. give the kid a chance and let the jury judge him. after all bill gates did not even finish highschool we dont talk about him. Walt disney got kicked out of the military. this second chance could help this young man out. so many americans are willing to just throw away today's youth and with him being a african american male it is even harder on him some people may say that is not true but lets open our eyes and face that fact of life.

he deserves to get his punishment. But let the kid play and help him out we can not judge anyone with out first judgeing ourselves.

GO PANTHERS

[pack98]

James Ragland:
Society doesn't gain by keeping youth off the field




07:40 PM CDT on Wednesday, August 10, 2005




There's plenty of time to punish Brandon Jackson if he, as police charge, was involved in robbing six people at gunpoint.

Regardless of the outcome, the kid already is in a lot of legal trouble. And he will forever be stigmatized as "that kid who robbed those people," especially if he's able to rise above this and reach any level of success in our society.

But before we rush to conclude that he should not be allowed to play his final year of high school football at Lancaster High, we must ask ourselves two questions:

How will it benefit Brandon or society for him to never step on the field again?

Conversely, how will it hurt him or society if he hangs up his cleats?

Also Online

Previous story: Arrest may not keep HS star off field
I know a lot of people will argue that allowing him to play will send the wrong message, namely that if you're a football star, you can get away with anything.

I don't agree with that assertion. Brandon hasn't gotten away with anything. And he won't.

The courts will decide his guilt or innocence. That's the way it should be: Brandon should be afforded the same due process as anyone accused of serious crimes.

Truth is, if he weren't a star athlete with so much potential, the case of Brandon Jackson would never have made the front page of this newspaper. We wouldn't even be talking about it.

That doesn't excuse any crime Brandon may have committed, but it explains why he's the subject of debate around the office water cooler and on talk radio.

Part of what makes the drama so interesting is that the coach at North Mesquite High, where Brandon played football last year, said he would not have allowed Brandon to play this year.

Look, it's hard to take exception with that coach or his athletic director for saying that Brandon should be disqualified from playing on their team.

Fine. The North Mesquite coach, Steve Bragg, even cited the Texas High School Coaches Association code of ethics to support his position.

Look, this is far more serious than a cheerleader attending a keg party after a game. It's way beyond ethics, although it does raise issues of Brandon's character, reliability and trust – and he'll have to work hard to restore public faith in him.

What Brandon is charged with are first-degree felonies, each punishable by up to 99 years in prison.

But what coach Bragg thinks now is moot, because Brandon no longer lives in his district.

Brandon has since moved to Lancaster, where school officials all the way up to the superintendent have welcomed him with open arms. And they have no problem with him playing football, pending the outcome of his Oct. 17 trial.

As misguided as some of the reasoning may be, Lancaster officials are making the right call.

In this case, the right call is the one that will allow Brandon to begin recovering from a horrendous mistake while he awaits trial and, if found guilty, his due punishment.

We all should want this kid to be rehabilitated and put on the right track. We all should want him to be saved, not dismissed like his life doesn't, or never did, have any value.

Our society has grown ridiculously cold and hard. And if you ask me, Brandon is a reflection of that. Here's a kid who – again, regardless of his role in the crime – did something stupid and will pay for it one way or another.

One of the mitigating circumstances for me not wanting to kick Brandon to the curb is the level of contrition he already has shown. "I just say at the time [of the crimes] I was real lost," Brandon said. "I couldn't really tell you what I was thinking. I can't tell you if I was thinking."

The young man has no prior arrests, a 3.53 grade-point average and a chance of leveraging his athletic skills into a college education. He also apologized to the victims.

"I know it might be hard for them to forgive me, but the best think I can do is pray for them," Brandon said. "... I feel bad for the family I hurt by doing this."

Right now, high school football may be this kid's best hope. Letting him play doesn't mean anyone condones bad behavior, let alone criminal behavior. He should be kept on a short leash, and Lancaster officials should insist that he get counseling.

On the other hand, if we turn our back on Brandon now, we ultimately may be punishing society – ourselves – more than we're punishing him.

E-mail jragland@dallasnews.com

[dragonsdaddy]

playing or doing anything extracurricular is a right earned with your skill and lost with your actions. there is no right to play football, but a privilege to be protected. most all of us at one time or another have some indiscretions of which we aren't proud and may have been the cause of a temporary loss of privileges. this too may be temporary, and after the jury decides how long his punishment should be, and he serves it, he will be free to play again. unless and until that occurs, he needs to be denied this privilege.

[LoneRocket]

It's NOT just the code of ethics being violated here BUT the
athlete in question has transferred for the purpose of athletic
competition.

At his prior school district...he would've been able to attend an
alternative campus but not permitted to play for his prior team.

It would seem to me that he has several hurdles to clear to even
be ELIGIBLE....at his new school.

No, according to an article the judge told him he had to live with his mother who happens to live in Lancaster with her brother, the judge told him to move.

Lancaster said he completed their alternative program.

I think he will probably be eligible to play unless the courts say no. We can speculate and give our two cents worth but it really means a hill of beans. We will see how his trial goes, for all we know he might not make a big impact in Lancaster’s system.

[dragonsdaddy]

unless he has lost his touch, i can't imagine him not being an impact player. if he wasn't expected to be of any import, no one would be talking about him because he'd be sitting at home waiting for the alternative school bus to pick him up. the coaches have better things with which to deal than a suspected felon.

[Reaganrattler07]

Everyone in life deserves second chances. without second chances then why are we americans why do we fight for our freedom. I am in the navy so i do it every day the kid made a great mistake but he is young and has his life infront of him and let the jury punish him. Second chances is what makes america work. give the kid a chance and let the jury judge him. after all bill gates did not even finish highschool we dont talk about him. Walt disney got kicked out of the military. this second chance could help this young man out. so many americans are willing to just throw away today's youth and with him being a african american male it is even harder on him some people may say that is not true but lets open our eyes and face that fact of life.

he deserves to get his punishment. But let the kid play and help him out we can not judge anyone with out first judgeing ourselves.

GO PANTHERS

Oh yes, lets let him go and let him rob another 6 people at gunpoint.

Something of this severity can't go ignored, he needs to be punished. Sure, if he got into a fist fight or something it wouldn't be half as bad but he robbed people and threatened to TAKE THEIR LIFE.

I hope the UIL decides to prohibits him from playing. He doesn't deserve it.

[Hornified64]

No, according to an article the judge told him he had to live with his mother who happens to live in Lancaster with her brother, the judge told him to move.

Lancaster said he completed their alternative program.

I think he will probably be eligible to play unless the courts say no. We can speculate and give our two cents worth but it really means a hill of beans. We will see how his trial goes, for all we know he might not make a big impact in Lancaster’s system.


LoneRocket....

It just so happens that his mother went to live with her brother AFTER
the "alleged" transgressions occurred.

Simply put....Jackson made the move to another district in order to PLAY
FOOTBALL. Period.

His move was because he would NOT be able to play at North Mesquite
and he was welcomed with open arms at Lancaster...because he can
play....as in he's a POTENTIAL difference maker.

He was a 1st Team All-District WR at North Mesquite in 2004...in 12-5A.

Do you think that his mother and he would've been moving in with a
relative if none of the "alleged" robberies had happened???

Your answer would be NO.

As for the poster (pack98) who stated that Jackson made a "mistake"....

I hope and pray that you are NEVER a victim of such a violent
and calous "mistake".

The alleged crimes were NO MISTAKE....they were a CHOICE that he
made. He and his accomplices have admitted...(one has already
copped a plea and agreement...ie. probation,etc.)

Make no mistake ....he's at Lancaster for the purpose of playing
athletics....which are a privilege....not a right.

Some of you posters don't get it.

[drgnbkr]

He admitted to the most serious of the crimes..what more do we need? I don't think xtra ciricular activities should be available to him...

[Reaganrattler07]

No, and neither are a lot of things. He should be tried as an adult....he isn't that far off from becomming one anyways.

And as KT2000 said in a previous thread: Leaving popcorn in the microwave too long is a mistake. Holding someone at gunpoint and robbing them is a crime.

[PowerPack'd]

I think the fact that Lancaster wants him to play is all I need to know about the kind of program they are running. I know if he were in Lufkin he wouldn't even be able to smell the football field. We have enough kids on the team that are trying to do the right thing. We don't need to send them the message that they can play until they have to report to TDC.

As far as Brandon is concerned, I am all about giving second chances. He will have some major obstacles to overcome, but if this is really a life changing event for him, he will be able to overcome those obstacles and play at the next level (barring significant jail time) whether he plays this year or not. It may mean that he has to play JUCO ball first.

I think letting him play sends the wrong message to him, his teammates, and the rest of his school.

[Reaganrattler07]

The message it's sending is "you can rob and threaten to kill people and you can still play and represent our school".

It's ridiculous how they're letting him play and acting like he's something less than a felon.

[dragonsdaddy]

but don't let your grades dip before a grading period ends or you'll be watching the next 3 games in your civvies.

[Deer Park Deer]

I know at our school (Deer Park) each player is expected to sign a Code Of Conduct contract. Any violation of this contract can result in suspension and/or being removed from the team. Last year we had a total of 11 Varsity starters who were caught drinking at a party one weekend and all 11 were suspended from the next weeks game and had to complete a week of "Happy Time" consisting of showing up at school at 5am and doing sprints , duck walks , log rolls and what ever else hell the coaches could come up with. Alot of people couldn't believe Massey suspended 11 starters from the same game but i admire his ethics and stance on conducting themselves responcibly and accepting punishment for breaking that code they all signed.

[FootballJunkie]

With what professional athletes get away with and college athletes get away with why is anyone surprised that it is filtering down to the high school level especially with the importance of football in this state. Sad state of affairs but to dismiss this as a kid making a mistake is a mistake. Toilet papering the principles house maybe but armed robbery give me a break.

[bullrock]

The sad thing about all of this is it is making Texas high school football look bad. I'm sure we're not the only state with this problem, but I heard on one of the local stations from a transient mititary caller that's how the rest of the USA views Texas football. It kinda hurt my feelings, but facts are facts. Why did this kid transfer to Lancaster anyway? I hope I have the right school? If it was for athletic reasons, it should be an open and shut case. The UIL needs to grow some gonads and clean up this mess. If this kid is as bad as he appears, what's going to happen if he doesn't like the way you block him or tackle him? I wouldn't want my kid playing with him. He put himself in this situation with his decisions. We all make choices and we pay the penalty or gain the benefits from those choices.