Then I read the article... "A police report indicates [Theodore] Berry, 46, repeatedly threatened 16-year Cesar Landin because the boy refused to sell gourmet popcorn for that team." Really? Popcorn? I read further and learned that the boy was from Mexico, and his parents were paying Berry $300 a month for Landin to live with him, attend high school in suburban Dallas and play basketball for the coach's club team. They also told the coach specifically that they did not want their child involved in fundraising, even though they knew that this was an integral part of the club basketball team. So, after 18 days of being forced to sell gourmet popcorn under threats of violence to help raise money for the team, Landin called his parents.
This doesn't seem like a crime worthy of the charge of something as serious as human trafficking (which is a second degree felony and carries a prison sentence of 2-20 years). Assuming the rest of the team also had to sell gourmet popcorn, which the article failed to mention, I don't understand how this falls under the category of trafficking. The purpose of the popcorn sales was to be able to pay for uniforms and travel expenses, none of which go into the coach's pocket. This is unfair to the other players too. If one player doesn't have to raise funds for the team (unless his parents front the money, which the article also doesn't mention), he is using the money the other players had worked for. This just doesn't add up. A youth should never be forced to do something against his will while being threatened with violence, but it's only popcorn...and the effects of this could destroy a man's life.
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