"A lawsuit that named decorated St. John Bosco High School football coach Jason Negro as a defendant was ruled by a Los Angeles Superior Court judge Thursday to have little legal basis. The civil suit filed a year ago by recently fired St. John Bosco president and CEO Brian Wickstrom and two other former school administrators seeks damages from Negro, the school and the Salesian Society - a Catholic religious order that oversees the school - claiming retaliation, harassment and defamation."
"The plaintiffs - St. John Bosco CFO Melanie Marcaurel, chief technology officer Derek Barraza and Wickstrom - also want their jobs back, according to the lawsuit. They were fired in 2024 after alleging that Negro embezzled money from the school for years and had assistant coaches pay the tuition for prized players in cash, saying the payments were from "anonymous donors.""
"The lawsuit also alleged that Negro conducted all financial transactions associated with his powerhouse program in cash that he keeps in a safe in his office, with no accounting or accountability by the school. A cross-complaint filed in June by Negro, St. John Bosco and the Salesians fired back, saying that "the school uncovered information that Wickstrom obtained loans without authorization, received excessive compensation and benefits to which he was not entitled, and breached his fiduciary duties.""
A civil suit filed by former St. John Bosco administrators sought damages and reinstatement, alleging retaliation, harassment and defamation. The plaintiffs alleged longtime embezzlement by coach Jason Negro, cash tuition payments for prized players attributed to "anonymous donors," and undocumented cash kept in a safe. A June cross-complaint alleged that former president Brian Wickstrom obtained unauthorized loans and received excessive compensation, breaching fiduciary duties. Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Tony L. Richardson found that the plaintiffs were employed by St. John Bosco, not Negro or the Salesian Society, and allowed 20 days to amend claims to focus on the school.
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