B.J. Pasquel resigned recently as head football coach for Coronado High School in Scottsdale for "personal and family reasons," says a February 5th Arizona Republic article.
New Times has learned that the resignation came just before Pasquel settled an extreme DUI conviction with the city of Scottsdale.
It wasn't the first serious DUI charge for the longtime coach, either.
Records show that one year after Pasquel began leading Coronado's football program in 2000, he was popped for extreme DUI and other charges. He later pleaded guilty to DUI and felony endangerment, and was sentenced to four years of probation and 30 days in jail.
The latest DUI case began after Pasquel allegedly blew through a red light and committed other driving infractions for which he was stopped in November. He was convicted of extreme DUI after pleading guilty on February 7, records show. We don't have the full disposition report, but it looks like he received probation, fines, and an order to attend a treatment program.
He's still employed at Coronado and works as a PE teacher. His online bio states that he'd been coaching football at the school for 20 years, and has been the head coach for the past 14.
The Scottsdale Unified School District declines comment, says Shaun Holmes, employee relations and staffing director. Asked whether or not the district had been aware of Pasquel's convictions, Holmes again declined comment. He referred questions about the district's policy on such matters to the district's website.
The school has a policy that prohibits violating the law while performing school functions or on school grounds, but nothing that appears to make getting a DUI on your own time an offense that merits discipline. That's not surprising, because even police officers who get DUIs in their personal vehicles aren't usually fired.
Messages to Pasquel and Coronado's principal weren't immediately returned. We'll let you know if we hear back from them.
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