Jurors deliberate fate of high school basketball coach who conducted naked fat tests

WAKEFIELD, R.I. — Jurors began deliberating Tuesday in the child molestation trial of a former Rhode Island high school basketball coach who asked hundreds of male student-athletes to take off their underwear so he could check their body fat.

Defense attorneys contend Aaron Thomas conducted the tests because he was focused on developing a successful athletics program, downplaying the credibility of students who say they were humiliated and embarrassed.

The trial for the once popular coach and teacher at North Kingstown High School lasted six weeks. Thomas, 57, is charged with second-degree child molestation and second-degree sexual assault.

Jurors concluded Tuesday without a verdict. The judge has instructed them to deliberate each day from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. until they reach a decision.

For nearly 30 years, Thomas designed and administered a fitness test that involved measuring their upper inner thighs and pressing his fingers into their groin areas with no other adults present.

Defense attorneys acknowledged it was wrong and not backed by body composition expert but insisted it didn't break the law. They said that's because Thomas didn't touch the boy athletes for sexual gratification or arousal, a key requirement under the charges he faces.

''I suggest to you that justice was served years ago,'' John Calcagni, Thomas' attorney, said during closing arguments on Monday. ''He lost his job. He'll never coach and teach ever again. And in his own words, his reputation has been destroyed.''

Prosecutors, meanwhile, presented a starker picture in their closing argument on Tuesday, focusing on Thomas creating a program that allowed him to have unfettered access to young naked boys for decades.

Quoting from the student-athletes who testified throughout the trial, the prosecution argued that Thomas preyed on prepubescent boys who were smaller in size and likely intimidated by Thomas' authority.

''He's someone who used somewhat legitimate testing as a cover and a guise to administer his own perverted tests, under the guise of legitimacy for his own pleasure,'' said Special Assistant Attorney General Meegan Thomson.

A key detail surrounding the case is the question Thomas would present to the male athletes, asking if they were ''shy or not shy?'' Those who said no were asked to strip naked, allowing Thomas to pinch various areas of their bodies, including near their groins and buttocks. The tests were conducted behind closed doors, first in a small closet-like room and then eventually in Thomas' office.

''It's meant to be coercive. That question is not poised until you're alone being towered over this man at 6'4 and you're already in a state of undress and he's saying 'shy or not shy'.'" Thomson said.

During his testimony, Thomas told his attorney he likely saw more than 600 student-athletes throughout his career, with ''roughly 80%'' of them taking their underwear off during the test. He acknowledged that removing the underwear was not necessary.

During his third day of testifying, Thomas acknowledged he lied to law enforcement when he was initially asked if students were naked for the tests.

''I'm truly sorry that it occurred the way it occurred,'' Thomas said. ''It was never my intent to ever hurt or cause any kind of pain, or embarrass, or make uncomfortable, even, any of the student-athletes. It was just for competitive advantage.''

Although Thomas is alleged to have performed the tests on multiple students over many years, the charges relate to just two. One was 14 at the time of the alleged crime between September 2000 and February 2002.

On Monday, the defense team attacked the credibility of the two student-athletes whose allegations led to the charges, pointing out the mental health struggles of one of the witnesses and inconsistent statements in their testimony.

Calcagni also stressed that some of the student-athletes are pursuing a civil lawsuit against North Kingstown, saying ''when money is on the line, that becomes a motivating factor for people, sometimes to stretching the truth, and sometimes not to tell the truth at all.''

Thomson pushed back against those attacks, saying that one of the witnesses involved in the charges has passed the statute of limitations to file a civil lawsuit and countered that the mental health struggles directly stemmed from the years of abuse caused by Thomas.

More than a dozen student-athletes testified throughout the six-week trial, as well as law enforcement officers, body composition experts and former school officials.

Judge Melanie Wilk Thunberg told jurors that if they don't find Thomas guilty of sexual assault, they can consider whether he's guilty of misdemeanor battery, a lesser charge.