A letter written in 2005 by a former student and sent by certified mail to Ordman Alley led to his removal from the inaugural class of inductees to the Maine Basketball Hall of Fame and his expulsion from the Maine Sports Hall of Fame.
Alley, 72, was a legendary boys basketball coach at Jonesport-Beals High School in Washington County before he retired in 2005. The Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram reported last week on the actions taken against him by the two halls of fame.
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The woman makes serious allegations against Alley in the letter. The newspaper obtained a copy of it, but is not publishing its contents because it could not independently corroborate her allegations.
The woman said she wrote the letter because of her anger toward Alley, a former teacher of hers.
“When I wrote the letter to him I wanted him to finally acknowledge what he did … and take responsibility,” she told the newspaper.
Alley signed for the letter, says the woman, now 58, but she does not know if he read it. He did not respond to her.
When it was announced in March that Alley was among the first inductees to the Maine Basketball Hall of Fame, the woman decided to send a copy of the letter to the hall’s board of directors.
“We were made aware of information and acted on it appropriately,” said Steve Pound, chairman of the Maine Basketball Hall of Fame. “That’s the only statement I will make.”
The woman said she did speak to the board of directors on a conference call. The board then voted to remove Alley from the class of inductees.
Alley was one of five prominent Maine high school and college coaches among the original group of 23 inductees. During a 39-year coaching career, his teams won nine state championships and more than 500 games.
The Maine Sports Hall of Fame also received a copy of the letter. “We did our own due diligence, contacted several sources and acted on the accumulation of information,” said Dick Whitmore, Maine Sports Hall of Fame president.
Its executive board spoke with the woman, who remains a resident of Washington County, and a local family doctor who has given emotional support to her.
Alley is not the first member of the Maine Sports Hall of Fame to have his induction revoked. In 2013, its board of directors voted unanimously to remove Dana Wilson after he was found guilty of possession of child pornography.
In announcing that decision, the Maine Sports Hall of Fame said it “takes great pride in formally honoring and memorializing Maine athletes and sports figures who have brought distinction and specialty to the state of Maine.”
A search of the state’s public database shows that Alley has no criminal record in Maine.
Alley did not answer a phone call at his home Saturday. When reached a few days earlier, he said: “I have no comment. I understand why you’re calling. I’m not as important as you think.”
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