Former Coach Pleads Guilty To Harassment, Pays Fine

Neshaminy High School teacher and former boys’ basketball coach Jerry Devine pleaded guilty last week to harassment.

According to online court records, 42-year-old Devine, a Middletown resident, submitted a guilty plea to the summary charge and paid a little over $450. The money covers a $300 fine, and the other money is for costs related to the case.

The summary charge is comparable to a traffic ticket. The guilty plea and payment of costs last week closed out the case.

Devine was charged by Middletown police after video of him slamming into a referee during a basketball game made national headlines last month.

While Devine was fired from his coach job, he kept his teaching position in Neshaminy. He was suspended for a few days following the incident that happened at a game against Pennsbury High School.

The contact between Devine and the PIAA referee appears to be a head-butt. The incident happened after a disputed call toward the end of the game. The referee fell to the ground after Devine’s lunge toward him.

Devine, who teaches emotional support classes and has been praised by former students for his skills in the classroom, has remained quiet on the issue and reportedly did not attend Tuesday evening’s school board meeting.

Devine and the referee have both kept quiet to the media in the wake on the video surfacing.