Jason Stinson neither approved nor authorized the following statements. Rodney Daugherty, Chairperson of the Jason Stinson Legal Defense Fund is responsible for the contents on this webpage. Any questions, concerns or inquiries should be directed to Rodney at 502-413-5196 or supportourstinson@gmail.com .

If you have ever given your time and blown a whistle; the above quote is directed to you. Most coaches are essentially volunteers. Yeah sure there the high school coaching jobs that pay a thousand to a few thousand dollars a year. That is not financial compensation for the time a coach puts in. I recall hearing stories about guys working as college graduate assistants for barely enough money to eat and a cot to sleep on. The ones who made it out of there may have been lucky enough to move on to coaching gig that had a real paycheck. Those are not very common. I have been given several different reasons from coaches as to why they do what they do. The love of the game, the joy of giving back, wanted to be with their kid, pass on their knowledge of the game etc.

The one thing that I have probably heard every coach say though is: "The kids" "the boys" or something to that effect. There is a special feeling that a coach gets from giving. It is one of the few places in life you can earn unconditional love and better yet give it. A bond is formed that for some is never broken. These kids will go back to a coach for advice on all sorts of things. You don't just coach; many times you have to take on the role of a parent and even a guidance counselor. Anyone who has ever taken that 3am phone call from "Timmy" who is going to kill himself because "Jenny" is now dating "Joey" (you could probably fill in your own story) knows what I mean. You make many sacrifices that mostly only your family sees. You take time away from your family to be a part of another.

Athletics brings together people from all different backgrounds. The key word is together. Sure not everyone develops a Brian Piccolo/Gayle Sayers type of relationship, but they serve as a fine example (If you don't know what I am talking about check out a movie called Brian's Song 1971). You come to know your players and teammates and they become a part of your lives. You volunteer your time and you show up because the kids are expecting you to. It could be freezing cold or sweltering hot. It doesn't matter because you will be there either way. This is you chance to make a difference in this world. Perhaps you can help these young men to become good citizens, good fathers and good husbands all while teaching them to stop the blitzing linebacker.

A scary situation has occurred in Louisville, KY. A coach has found himself under indictment for reckless homicide surrounding the death of one his players. This was a terrible tragedy where there should be no one to blame, yet Coach Stinson goes on trial at the end of August. July 1, 2009 Jefferson County Public Schools released their findings (The Berman Report) from the investigation into the death of Max Gilpin. Please click here to download a .pdf document that contains a transcript of Dr. Sheldon Berman's statement regarding the investigation. Please click here to see the transcript as a webpage. If you would like to see the 271 page report in its entirety please click here.

If you are coach in any sport you should take a hard look at this. You may find that this practice was no different than a practice you ran that day. A very dangerous precedent is being set here that could have far reaching implications. Feel free to contact us if you would like to help. I will leave you with an amusing picture printed in the Courier-Journal on 7-6-09. Thank you to the Marc Murphy and the Courier-Journal. I never thought I would use the words "thank you" and Courier-Journal in the same sentence.