#freedoug legal fees

On December 6, 2021, Doug Crandall was suddenly and shockingly suspended from his role as head coach of the Issaquah Girls basketball program pending investigation into an "allegation of misconduct." At the time of his suspension — 30 minutes before practice for our 3-0 team — they took his keys, told him to leave the premises, to not go on school district grounds, and to not have any contact with our players. We were given no further information about this drastic step that greatly impacted the girls in the program.

 

Over forty days later, the Issaquah School District has yet to specify an allegation of misconduct or provide Doug a chance to defend himself. They haven’t started (or even scheduled) an investigation. Despite Doug having unanimous support from the parents and players on our team (and incredible solidarity from the entire community), the Issaquah School District and its board of directors sits behind a wall of silence. Their lawyer has directed Doug to cease emailing board members directly and to stop encouraging people's support; they implied he might be fired if he did not stop. (Which isn't a huge threat when they've already taken what he values most: the privilege of leading the Issaquah Girls Basketball program.)

They greatly underestimated our "family," Doug's love for the players, and how hard he (and we) would fight. They also overlooked the most important part of this: he has done nothing wrong. Doug's leadership is what bonded us together before -- and since -- this ordeal began. It's the very communication the school district seemingly indicts that has made our daughters feel valued and helped them thrive.

 

We do not believe the Issaquah School District has (or ever received) an allegation of misconduct from a parent or a player. We believe they proactively cultivated this situation through a rogue investigation of their own . An administrator did this to our coach once in May of 2021 (but seemingly failed to secure his dismissal over the protest of the Issaquah athletic director), and now it has happened again. It's either an act of malice or an inexcusable overreaction.

 

If the Issaquah School District has an allegation — any sort of formal allegation — this never should have taken half our season. And if there is actually a formal (or even informal) complaint, it's either: 1. fabricated, 2. a misunderstanding, or 3. minor and addressable without this level of pain to the players, this community, and Doug and his family. How do we know it’s one of those three? Because — as Doug has said all along: he has nothing to hide. We know our coach well.  Nothing whatsoever that he's done would rise to this level of pain.

 

The Issaquah School District is the one with something to hide. Right now, it’s hiding its proactive creation of this suspension. Over the long-term, what it’s hiding is an insidious culture of fear and intimidation that hunts for wrong-doing by habit. This culture has resulted in 21 different head coaches — over just the last ten seasons — in the Issaquah and Skyline boys and girls basketball programs. We are doing enormous damage to our kids. This on-going episode damages them. Our lack of putting them first in our values and decision-making damages them. Ripping a coach and team away from each other three games into a season is traumatic; it's especially cruel in the wake of a 2021 season decimated by covid restrictions. To do such a thing -- to go to this extreme  -- the ISD better have a truly compelling reason. We are certain they do not.

 

It’s time to end this. In early December, the superintendent told Stephanie Crandall (a kindergarten teacher at Issaquah Valley Elementary) he encourages his staff to move judiciously on these matters because he understands the stress on families. Yet, the district has remained silent and indifferent for over a month. It has done nothing at all. The superintendent and his leaders  do not seem to care. 

 

We do not think our superintendent understands. This ordeal has caused significant emotional distress for Doug and his family and our families as well. And worse yet, it defames Doug further with each passing day. He's a West Point graduate from the Class of 1995, a long-time coach with deep ties in Issaquah and broad ties across the country. Things like this make people wonder. We've had to call reporters and correct stories about the "coaching change." Other coaches see he's not on the bench. People talk at dinner: "there must be something to this.” 

 

There is not. And yet the district remains silent. We are thankful for the heroes who have stepped up and took over as interim coaches. But Doug Crandall is the leader of this program for the long run. We want our daughters to trust adults, see leaders do things the right way, and to believe in justice.

 

 You messed with the wrong basketball family. If you're just running out the shot clock until Doug's contract ends on February 1, we will continue the fight -- to expose what happened and to make sure this never happens again to any coach, anywhere in this community.

Please help us in this fight...for Doug, our daughters, transparency, accountability, and a better way forward.

 

The Issaquah Girls Basketball Family

“Choose the harder right.”
Psalm 55