Whipped Students Sue Coach

Three Jackson, Miss., high school students who say they were whipped with a weightlifting belt for "failing to run basketball plays correctly" are taking their coach to court. Murrah High School coach Marlon Dorsey says he did paddle the students, but he did it to "save these young men from the destruction of self," CNN reports. One of the beatings was captured on video.

Dorsey "told them they had the choice to accept the licks without complaining to anyone or forfeit the opportunity to play basketball for their high school team," the lawsuit states, claiming that one student was whipped at least once a day with a belt that weighed up to 10 pounds. The school district says the matter has been resolved but it doesn't want to infringe on the coach's privacy by saying what action was taken against him. (More Mississippi stories.)