Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images
Georgia Tech Coach Josh Pastner Accused of Sexual Assault In Counter-Lawsuit
Georgia Tech coach Josh Pastner has been accused of sexual assault in a lawsuit filed in Arizona, according to Dan Marries of KOLD News 13.
The lawsuit is a counter-lawsuit against Pastner, who sued Ronald Bell and his girlfriend Jennifer Pendley for defamation after the two allegedly tried to extort and blackmail Pastner with information that would damage the coach's reputation and cause him to lose his job.
In the counter-lawsuit, Pendley claims that Pastner assaulted her in a Houston hotel room in February 2016 when Pastner was the coach at Memphis. Pendley claims that while Bell was in the shower, Pastner masturbated in front of her and tried to force her to perform oral sex on him, despite Pendley resisting, crying, telling Pastner "no" and asking Pastner to stop during the incident.
Pendley claims that Pastner threatened her not to say anything because he was the Memphis basketball coach and because he and Bell had been friends for more than 20 years while Pendley had been dating him for less than a year up to that point.
The lawsuit adds that from mid-February 2016 to early March 2016, Pastner harassed Pendley 11 more times by either touching her inappropriately or "whispering obscenities and innuendos" to her when they were alone. Additionally, the suit claims that Pastner would bring up the Houston incident and threaten Pendley to not talk about it.
Pastner's lawyer released a statement in which he denied the claims and said there are text messages and emails exchanged between Pendley, Pastner and Pastner's wife that refute the claims.
Earlier this season Georgia Tech players Tadric Jackson and Josh Okogie were suspended by the team for receiving apparel, meals and transportation from in violation of NCAA rules. Both players have since been reinstated.
The Yellow Jackets are 11-12 so far in Pastner's second season.
