Louisville trustees have unscheduled meeting amid escort allegations
LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- Louisville trustee board chairman Larry Benz said there was no discussion about coach Rick Pitino's future at an unscheduled executive meeting on Thursday, nor did they address an escort's allegations that she and other dancers stripped and had sex with recruits and players.
Board members were expected to discuss the scandal surrounding the program. But Benz emerged from nearly two hours behind closed doors and said only that pending litigation issues were discussed without providing any details.
Benz said the school wants to discover the truth behind Katina Powell's allegations that former men's basketball staffer Andre McGee paid her $10,000 for 22 shows. Benz said Louisville is complying with investigations by the NCAA and law enforcement, adding, "We are committed to let those authorities do their work."
University President James Ramsey, who has also urged the campus community to let the process play out, did not speak to reporters after the meeting.
That left Benz to fend off a series of questions about the scandal and its effect on the school's image. He said he wasn't aware of any subpoenas and reiterated the confidentiality of board discussions.
Benz stressed that the goal was finding out what happened and correcting it.
"Whether it's the NCAA or any other law enforcement agency," he said, "we're going to cooperate and be fully supportive to finding out the truth of the evidence."
Powell's allegations in "Breaking Cardinal Rules: Basketball and the Escort Queen" have launched four investigations, including a joint effort between Louisville campus police, Louisville Metro Police and the Commonwealth's Attorney's Office. The athletic department and NCAA began theirs after the school was notified about the allegations in August and contacted the governing body.
The University of Louisville Foundation has also hired a law firm to review the allegations.
Indianapolis-based IBJ Book Publishing, which produced Powell's book, said last Friday that it received a subpoena from the grand jury. Spokeswoman Kate Snedeker said in a text to The Associated Press that the company was "considering an appropriate response."
The Commonwealth's Attorney's Office was awaiting answers to that subpoena and others on Thursday. No testimony was expected on a day that assistant prosecutor Jeff Cooke said was a deadline for responding to certain aspects of subpoenas. Cook did not discuss them because of the secrecy of grand jury proceedings, but added that subpoenas could be answered in person, electronically or by mail and courier.
Meanwhile, Powell's youngest daughter is facing an unrelated prostitution charge.
Abraeshea Moorman, who danced with two of her sisters and whom Powell calls "Shay" throughout the book, was arrested last year by Louisville Metro Police for misdemeanor prostitution. She faces a Jan. 15 pretrial conference in Jefferson County District Court after Wednesday's hearing on the charge was postponed.
A call to Moorman's attorney, Bart McMahon, was not immediately returned.
