A former assistant director of Utah State University’s athletic department — who was fired alongside football coach Blake Anderson and other officials during a scandal USU said involved mishandled reports of sexual misconduct — is suing the university and three of the officials who played a part in the firings.
Amy Crosbie filed the lawsuit Thursday in 1st District Court in Logan.
In the lawsuit, Crosbie accuses the university and three officials — Elizabeth Cantwell, who was the university’s president last year; Diana Sabau, then USU’s athletic director; and Mica McKinney, the university’s vice president of legal affairs and the school’s general counsel — of violating her rights by firing her on July 8, 2024.
“While we recognize Ms. Crosbie’s long-standing ties and past contributions to the USU community, the university disputes the allegations made in this lawsuit,” a university spokesperson said in a statement. “We look forward to resolving this matter. USU officials are focused on the future of the university, and Athletics is continuing its important work of creating an environment where student-athletes and its athletics programs can thrive.”
Crosbie and her attorneys don’t mention a specific figure in the suit — but for her distress and damage to her reputation she seeks lost pay and benefits, as well as compensatory and punitive damages.
Cantwell left USU in February, after only a year and a half as president, to become president of Washington State University, a job she started in April. Sabau announced in early July that she was leaving the Logan school for a job at the University of Maryland; she started work there on Monday, according to a release from Maryland’s athletic department.
In July 2024, Cantwell fired Anderson, citing academic issues and claims that he violated Title IX reporting requirements. Anderson was accused of conducting his own “fact-finding mission” into the allegation behind a football player’s 2023 off-campus arrest for domestic violence — rather than reporting it immediately to the proper USU officials.
The same month Anderson was fired, three other athletic officials — Crosbie, deputy athletic director Jerry Bovee and director of player development Austin Albrecht — were also terminated. USU said Bovee and Albrecht were fired for failing to comply with the university’s policies regarding sexual misconduct and sexual violence. No reason was given for Crosbie’s firing at the time.
In her lawsuit, Crosbie singles out Sabau’s treatment of her, saying Sabau “targeted [Crosbie] in meetings, excluded her from mentoring roles and various hiring committees, and criticized her performance — constantly belittling her work.” When Crosbie appealed her firing, the lawsuit says, she and her lawyers were not allowed to present evidence or witnesses to corroborate the accusations of Sabau’s “bullying.”
Bovee cited similar complaints about Sabau in a lawsuit against USU, filed last December, in which he sought $300,000 in back pay and damages. In Bovee’s lawsuit, there is an allegation that Sabau mistreated Bovee and took actions to “minimize his role and move him out of his position.”
Bovee filed another lawsuit in February, this one in federal court, accusing the school of mishandling the football player’s case — and allowing him to graduate without investigating the domestic-violence allegations made against him.
Anderson filed a lawsuit against USU last November, seeking $15 million in damages.
Tribune reporter Jason Batacao contributed to this article.