College Coach Fired After Agreeing to Adopt Pregnant Player's Baby — Now She's Suing the University

By Brian Jones

Content Warning: Death of an infant. A college softball coach is taking legal action against her former school. Jamie Wiggins, a former assistant softball coach at Idaho State, filed a lawsuit against the University, claiming she was fired when she offered to adopt the baby of a player who wanted to keep her pregnancy a secret from her parents, according to the Daily Mail. The lawsuit was filed in November, alleging that school officials violated her first amendment rights. Wiggins also accused Idaho State of violating her right to express her religion as she felt it was her duty as a Christian to adopt the baby boy who died less than three months after he was born due to health issues.

Wiggins said she approached the young woman on May 1 after hearing rumors about a pregnancy. The young woman denied she was pregnant at first but admitted it a week later and asked for Wiggins' help. On May 10, the young woman asked Wiggins and her husband Greg if they would adopt the baby. They agreed but the baby, who was born prematurely, remained in the hospital until July 28 when he died from complications. 

The court documents stated: "The decision of plaintiff and her husband Greg Wiggins to offer to adopt the baby was an exercise of their Christian faith. Plaintiff's religious beliefs dictate the care of orphans in their distress when called upon, with a recognition of harsh consequences for not doing so."

Wiggins said she was threatened to be fired during a meeting on May 17. She did not back down from adopting the baby and was let go after talking to the head coach about plans for recruiting. "Given the context and facts of this situation and the university's duty to intervene in actual or perceived conflicts of interest between students and authority figures, when the plaintiff's contract expired, the university chose not to renew the plaintiff's one-year contract for another year," Idaho State said in a statement to EastIdahoNews.com. 

"The university always has the best interests of the student as its sole motivation. Any allegation that the university's actions were motivated by other reasons is patently false. The university stands by its decision and plans to vigorously defend against this litigation." Wiggins is now an assistant softball coach at Oregon State. 

0comments
Start the Conversation

of