| | Associated Press
INDIANAPOLIS -- As demonstrators passed out fliers
threatening the 19-year-old freshman whose accusations led to Bob
Knight's dismissal, Indiana University officials rushed to defend
the student.
|  | | Indiana freshman Kent Harvey reports to campus police to tell his version of the incident with Bob Knight. |
If Kent Harvey wants to remain a student at Indiana, the
university will ensure his safety, spokesman Christopher Simpson
said. He would not specify what steps would be taken except that
campus police would investigate any threats.
Harvey and his two brothers have been threatened by e-mail and
telephone since their confrontation Thursday with the basketball
coach, their stepfather, Mark Shaw, said.
"You have a situation here where a young man found himself at
the wrong place at the wrong time and he got caught up in a
national media frenzy that was not his responsibility," Simpson
said.
"For anybody to blame him for the problems of coach Knight is
inaccurate and it's reprehensible. He deserves to have a productive
career at IU just as any of our other students."
IU officials said Harvey's complaint wasn't the only reason
Knight was fired Sunday. Brand called Knight "defiant and
hostile" and said the coach had shown a "continued
unwillingness" to work within guidelines of the athletic
department.
Knight, already in trouble for a history of misconduct, had been
under a "zero-tolerance" policy that bars inappropriate physical
contact with students.
Shaw said all he and his stepsons wanted was an apology, Shaw
said.
Knight apparently tried to apologize, Shaw told the Herald-Times
of Bloomington. Shaw said he was contacted Saturday by Knight's
friend, Larry Rink, a Bloomington physician who said the coach
wanted to apologize.
Shaw drafted a statement of apology and faxed it to Rink on
Sunday morning -- one hour after Knight was fired, the newspaper
reported. The statement called for Knight to take responsibility
for the confrontation and to discourage criticism of Harvey and
other witnesses.
Harvey could not be reached for comment late Sunday. A message
on his dorm room phone said his voice mailbox was full.
Harvey and his brothers -- Kyle and Kevin Harvey -- and two
friends were at Assembly Hall on campus in Bloomington to pick up
football tickets. Kent Harvey and Knight passed each other at a
doorway.
Kent Harvey greeted Knight with, "Hey, what's up, Knight?"
That prompted Knight to grab his arm and admonish him.
"I said, 'Son, my name is not Knight to you," Knight said
Friday. "It's Coach Knight or it's Mr. Knight. I don't call people
by their last name, and neither should you"'
Protesters burned an effigy Sunday outside the home of
university president Myles Brand. Others passed out fliers on the
Bloomington campus showing a picture of Harvey with the message:
"Wanted: Dead."
The Harvey brothers aren't the first of Knight's critics to feel
the wrath of the coach's supporters. Death threats drove English
professor Murray Sperber to take leave for a year in his hometown
of Montreal.
Sperber had criticized both Knight and the university's handling
of the coach earlier this year during an investigation into
accusations that Knight choked former player Neil Reed during a
1997 practice.
More than 160 Indiana University professors called on Brand to
take a stronger stand in support of free speech and academic
freedom after Sperber left campus.
Sperber had planned to return to Indiana in January, but not to
teach. Now that Knight has been fired, he hopes to resume teaching.
"No person, a coach or anyone else, is bigger than the
university," Sperber told The Associated Press on Sunday. "And
finally the trustees are biting the bullet on this and putting the
good of the institution ahead of a basketball coach.
"I look forward to the day when I see Indiana University in the
news about an educational endeavor, a great school of music, or
business, or something. It's long overdue, very long overdue,
frankly."
| |
ALSO SEE
Ousted General: Knight fired for unacceptable behavior
Stepfather of student wants apology from Knight
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Mark Shaw, the stepfather of Indiana University student Kent Harvey speaks with the ESPNews crew.
RealVideo: 28.8
 Accuser Kent Harvey tell reporters he was immediately scared when confronted by Knight.
wav: 127 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Mark Shaw discusses the incident between his stepson and Bob Knight with ESPN's Chris McKendry.
RealAudio: 14.4
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