Parents file for injunction to end Kepley’s suspension
Amber and Justin Kepley, the parents of Glades Central quarterback Garrison Kepley, have filed for a legal injunction to end the Raiders senior’s yearlong suspension.
The Florida High School Athletic Association had suspended Kepley for his senior season for allegedly receiving an impermissible benefit as part of a college trip he took with Glades Central coach Rashad Jackson and 23 other athletes during the summer. On Sept. 2, he appealed his suspension before the FHSAA Section Four Appeals Committee, but it was denied.
Jackson was suspended for six games, and his appeal was denied Tuesday.
The injunction was filed Thursday in the 15th Judicial Circuit Court in West Palm Beach against the FHSAA.
Garrison Kepley previously attended Oceanside Collegiate Academy in Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina. Jackson was the school’s defensive coordinator before he was hired at Glades Central.
In the court documents, Kepley’s parents attest in affidavits that neither they nor Garrison Kepley received any impermissible benefits on the trip.
Jackson also provided an affidavit, denying providing any impermissible benefits to Garrison Kepley or his parents. All three affidavits were provided on Aug. 26.
“Knowing Rashad Jackson made ... our decision to move more tolerable, because it’s not easy relocating your family to an area where you don’t know anyone,” Justin Kepley said in his affidavit. “This in no part means we were recruited or that we were given any promise of impermissible benefits.”
Justin Kepley said he received an opportunity for career advancement in his company, learning of the opportunity in September 2020 and accepting the position in June.
He said in his affidavit that they listed their house for sale on May 28 and closed the sale on July 1. He said no one in his family was recruited to any school.
According to the court filing, Garrison Kepley’s parents withdrew him from Oceanside Collegiate Academy on June 5. The trip, which was through Jackson’s company, J.A.C.K. Academy, started on June 23 and cost $250 to attend. The court filing said Kepley did not receive free or reducedprice transportation.
According to the court filing, “a parent concerned about her son’s chances of becoming the starting quarterback” met with Glades Central Principal Melanie Bolden-Morris and Jackson on June 29. Bolden-Morris said during the meeting that confirmation that no improper conduct occurred during the college trip would be required before Garrison Kepley could transfer to Glades Central, according to the court filing.
Amber Kepley said in her affidavit that Garrison Kepley enrolled at Glades Central on July 8.
Bolden-Morris reported “allegations of recruiting improprieties” to the Palm Beach County School District on or about Aug. 1, according to the court filing. Palm Beach County Athletic Director Valerie Miyares reported the allegations to the FHSAA on Aug. 10, according to the court filing.
Justin Kepley said in his affidavit that Bolden-Morris told him and Amber Kepley that Garrison Kepley was suspended for a year on Aug. 16. He said prior to that date, they were not told about any investigation or violation concerning Garrison Kepley.
Jackson said in his affidavit, “Bolden-Morris never did due diligence in providing me an opportunity to present information that would provide evidence that her allegations were false. During the self-investigation and self-reporting process, Principal Bolden-Morris intentionally failed to report all pertinent information that would provide evidence that her allegations were false. Principal Bolden-Morris was fully aware that she had information that was contrary to the allegations made in her self-report, however, she willingly withheld this information and self-reported false information anyway.”
The court filing says, “the only discernible difference between [Garrison Kepley] and the other students who attended the tour, the student whose mother took issue with [Garrison Kepley’s] attendance of the tour, and the principal who self-reported the alleged violation without conferring all the facts is race.”
The filing accuses the FHSAA and the school of violating the Kepley’s 14th Amendment rights. Kepley is white, and the 14th Amendment deals with equal protection under the law and due process.
Kepley has missed Glades Central’s preseason game and first two regular-season games. The Raiders play Atlantic at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday.
Messages to Glades Central’s administration were not immediately returned. FHSAA spokeswoman Ashton Moseley said the FHSAA does not comment on cases in litigation.
FHSAA bylaw 36.1.6 states that “student-athletes must not receive impermissible benefits, which are benefits that are not given or generally not given to all other students in the school.”