Minnesota lawsuit sends a message to parents: Complain about your kid's playing time at your own risk

Upset about your kid's playing time? Enough to take your complaints up the chain in an attempt to get the coach fired?

A case in Minnesota has a warning attached: Make sure what you're alleging is true.

The Pioneer Press in St. Paul, Minnesota, reported last week that Julie Bowlin, 55, signed documents admitting she made numerous false accusations against Nathan McGuire, leading to his 2014 dismissal as a girls basketball coach at a high school in Woodbury, near St. Paul.

The accusations were related to disputes over playing time involving Bowlin's daughter.

The $50,000 settlement came three years after the Minnesota Supreme Court revived the defamation lawsuit, finding that a parent’s criticism of a high school coach is not protected by the First Amendment because a coach is not a public figure.

“I was told I could never coach in the district again,” McGuire told the Pioneer Press. “This lady that was in my district for two months basically destroyed everything.”

McGuire still teaches in the district and is hoping the out-of-court settlement will get him back on the hardcourt in his district.