Deion Sanders has responded to allegations that he assaulted the chief financial officer of his charter school in what has become typical Prime Time fashion -- by maligning his adversary and stressing his heroic, unwavering commitment to children. That's the line he took when he accused his then-wife of assault. And that's how he's sought to deflect critics who say that Prime Prep Academy is either a professional athlete's noble but misguided vanity project or an out-and-out scam, with a heavy emphasis on the latter.
But how to explain the mounting evidence that the school is failing? Throw his business partner under the bus.
"D.L. Wallace is no good. He's a snake," Sanders told WFAA's Brett Shipp. "He ain't no good. All he is there for is money. I've got African American kids dropping out of school. I'm trying to keep them in school, get them through college. This dude is trying to get a check."
See also: Deion Sanders and His Girlfriend Are Making a Reality Show for OWN about His Charter School
He's right, of course. There's ample evidence that Wallace, a marketing guy with no experience in education, is more interested in making a profit than preparing kids for college.
But this isn't exactly news. We described some of his shady dealings in a 2012 cover story on Prime Prep, back when he was wooing parents with the "pitchman enthusiasm of Billy Mays hocking OxiClean."
Nor was Prime Prep Sanders and Wallace's first shady business venture. They were previously accused of scamming investors in a recruiting publication called PrimeTimePlayer Pages, claims they denied.
So, for Sanders to feign surprise that Wallace has turned out to be a snake-oil salesman is a tad bit disingenuous, not that that comes as much of a shocker either.
