Lawyer Says No Credibility To Allegations That Benched Coach

ANDOVER, MA -- A lawyer for Andover High School boys volleyball coach E.J. Perry says Superintendent Sheldon Berman's accidental release of a draft of a memo to a newspaper was "unlawful." Timothy Perry went on to say that "there was not a scintilla of credibility" uncovered in an investigation of the coach, who was placed on administrative leave last month after benching and stripping two players of their captaincy.

Separately on Thursday, Windham High School said Thursday it had hired E.J. Perry as boys basketball coach, saying the had thoroughly reviewed the Andover situation and had complete confidence in the decision.

"It is unclear why the principal started the draft of that memo or from where he concocted the irresponsible information reported in that memo, as he was never involved in this investigation," Perry wrote in a letter to the Eagle Tribune and the Andover Townsman. "However, I do know that everyone involved — from the superintendent on down — admits that the memo was a draft and the document you have printed and reported on is not in E.J.’s personnel file."

Berman has apologized for releasing the memo that was written by Andover High School Principal Philip Conrad. Perry's letter characterizes the coach's suspension and the subsequent investigation as a fishing expedition based on rumor and hearsay. He also said he had difficulty getting school officials to explain why Perry had been suspended or allow the coach to lay out his version of events.

"Rather, from April 13 to 18, two assistant principals say they chased down various rumors about E.J. that they claimed spanned several years but were only brought forward in response to an April 11 game in which a player was admonished," Timothy Perry, an attorney and brother of E.J. Perry, wrote. "Among other things, we were advised of some of the same type of vague, unattributed hearsay statements on which The Eagle-Tribune (and the Towsman) has been reporting — the type of statements that are impossible to fairly rebut, yet leave a permanent scar on a person’s reputation."

Coach Perry's leave was based on what Andover High School Athletic Director Bill Martin called "credible enough" allegations into his coaching practices. The investigation followed an April 11 match in which senior Alex Shih refused to leave the court after Perry tried to substitute Matt Guthrie for him. After the match Perry stripped both players of their captaincy.

Shih later boasted about the incident on social media. Later, evidence emerged that some players had undertaken an effort to oust Perry in a plan they called "Operation Hydra," in reference to a Marvel Comics plot line in which a company infiltrates an organization in an attempt to ruin a person's reputation.

Timothy Perry said school officials finally spoke to Coach Perry on April 20 and told him the investigation was concluded. Coach Perry was formally reinstated on April 20.

"It did not take Sherlock Holmes to discover that there was not a scintilla of credibility in what was uncovered in the 'investigation,' much less a shred of evidence that would have been admissible in a court of law to support the serious claims that The Eagle-Tribune (and the Townsman) has continuously (and, I would argue, irresponsibly) reported on," Timothy Perry wrote.

The newspaper published the letter with an editor's note that acknowledged Timothy Perry had contacted them before the letter was published, but the contact came "after the story was prepared for the web and shortly before the newspaper’s print deadline."

"Importantly, E.J. denied the salacious rumors you have reported and, it appears to me, those denials were accepted," Timothy Perry wrote. "My question is this: Why would there ever be a public discussion about a draft memo that contains inaccurate information, as you have advocated?"

For more on this story, see Perry's letter in the Andover Townsman. Subscribe to Andover Patch for more local news and real-time alerts.

Patch file photo.

Dave Copeland can be reached at dave.copeland@patch.com or by calling 617-433-7851. Follow him on Twitter (@CopeWrites) and Facebook (/copewrites).