Los Angeles Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh was added Friday to a lawsuit against his former employer, the University of Michigan, and a former assistant football coach accused of hacking into computer systems to acquire photos of college athletes.
Attorneys claim Harbaugh allowed Matt Weiss to continue working as co-offensive coordinator in a national playoff game after Weiss was seen viewing private information on a computer in December 2022.
"The university's delay in taking meaningful protective action until after a high-stakes game sends a clear message: Student welfare was secondary," said Parker Stinar, the lead lawyer in a class-action lawsuit arising from a criminal investigation of Weiss.
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"Had Harbaugh implemented basic oversight of his staff, plaintiffs and the class would have been protected against predators such as Weiss," the updated lawsuit states. "Instead, Weiss was a highly compensated asset that was promoted by and within the football program, from which position he was able to, and did, target female student athletes."
Messages from The Associated Press seeking comment from Harbaugh and Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel were not immediately returned Friday.
The lawsuit says a staff member saw Weiss viewing private information at Schembechler Hall, headquarters for the football team, around Dec. 21, 2022, and reported it before Michigan played Texas Christian University in a playoff game days later on Dec. 31.
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Weiss was fired a few weeks later in January 2023 during an investigation of his computer use.
Earlier this year, after charges were filed, Harbaugh told reporters he didn't know anything about Weiss' troubles until after the playoff game. He said the allegations were "shocking."
"Just shocked, completely shocked. Disturbed," Harbaugh said in a video shared by the team. "It was after the TCU game that I found out, we found out, that there was allegations," he added. "And you said it. I mean, indictment, that's not a word that - sympathy for the victims and for Matt's family. It's shocking."
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Michigan announced the indictment this month, more than two years after Weiss, 42, was fired from his coaching position under Harbaugh after an investigation into the alleged crimes.
According to the indictment, Weiss "gained unauthorized access to student-athlete databases of more than 100 colleges and universities that were maintained by a third-party vendor." He then allegedly downloaded personal information and data of more than 150,000 athletes. From there, Weiss was able to access the information of more than 2,000 athletes, including access to their social media, email and cloud storage.
Weiss is accused of using this information to download "personal, intimate digital photographs and videos that were never intended to be shared beyond intimate partners," prosecutors said. The alleged crimes took place from 2015 to January 2023, and he is alleged to have primarily targeted women.
Weiss, who was fired in 2023 for failing to cooperate with a school investigation, entered a not guilty plea.
Weiss worked for Harbaugh's brother, John, on the coaching staff of the NFL's Baltimore Ravens before joining Michigan in 2021.
The lawsuit says Weiss' university computer had encryption software that had to be disabled by an external vendor as part of the investigation. Authorities disclosed in April that thousands of intimate photos and videos were found on his electronic devices and cloud storage accounts.
The NCAA previously handed down a four-year show-cause order for Harbaugh after determining the coach had impermissible contact with recruits and players during the COVID-19 restricted period. The organization determined Harbaugh "engaged in unethical conduct, failed to promote an atmosphere of compliance and violated head coach responsibility obligations."
Prior to that, Harbaugh and Michigan were under investigation for impermissible in-person scouting and sign-stealing allegations that cast a shadow over Michigan's run to the 2024 national championship. The Big Ten Conference ultimately suspended Harbaugh for three games.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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