Youth League Suspends Football Coach Who Handed Out Diuretics

A Chatsworth youth football coach who gave weight-loss pills to members of his team of 10- and 11-year-old boys was suspended Tuesday for the remainder of the season by the executive board of the Valley Youth Conference.

Ron Fidler, who had coached the Chatsworth Chiefs Mity-Mite team, was also put on probation for the 1987 season.

The unanimous decision of the 13-member board was reached after a meeting Monday night at Chatsworth High attended by board members, parents, Fidler and representatives from other Pop Warner football organizations.

“As far as we’re concerned, it’s over,” said Maury Hanks, football commissioner for the conference. “Some board members wanted something more severe and others wanted something less. But in the end, it was unanimous.”

Claudine Dodd accused Fidler of giving over-the-counter diuretics to her 10-year-old son, Jeff, in a complaint filed with Los Angeles police. She said the decision wasn’t harsh enough.

“He, to me, got another slap on the wrist by the conference,” Dodd said. “And if that’s their final verdict--that’s their final verdict. I’ll have to go by what they say. But that doesn’t mean I’m going to stop looking further into this.”

“I think it’s more severe than it would have been had it not been for all the publicity,” said Fidler, who has coached in the conference for 15 years. “I can’t say that I didn’t expect it. I felt saddened by it because I devoted a lot of my time to coaching and I enjoyed it. I will miss it, but I’m not going back to it.”

David Knokey, assistant supervisor for the North Valley branch of the city attorney’s office, said the case is still under investigation.