I told him what hazing was, he says.I did not explain to him that hazing wasgolf balls, broomsticks, and pinecones.Reichsteins son was unharmed; three otherfreshmen werent so lucky. Conway could have sentenced the three including Phil Sofia, 17, and Ken Carney, 16 to juvenile jail until they turned 21 or he could have given them probation. McElroy was practically a secondfather to Zereoue when the running back moved to ahome for wayward boys in Bellmorearriving, toMephams good fortune, at the start of hishigh-school career. Here's why food advocates are worried they cant afford it. According to the report, two of the attackers held down one of the freshmen while the third sodomized the freshman with a broomstick coated with Mineral Ice, a pain-relieving ointment. ", Patty says her son also hasn't recovered from the ordeal: "About a month ago, I had gotten a call from a neighbor. In an earlier proceeding, the three attackers, charged as juveniles, admitted to the assaults. In recent years, the Pirates havent done aswell, losing roughly as many games as theyvewon, but the coach remains a local legendafather figure who welcomes players to his house forbarbecues with his teenage daughters in attendance.Its not surprising, then, that McElroy and theadministration would be the first stop on thewhos-to-blame tour. (Almost as prevalent is the idea, notconfirmed by police, that the linemans fathercommitted suicide. The incident angered the victim's mother, who. Theyre sick of reporters, andtheyre worried about the lineman. Husband of woman murdered with an ax convicted 40 years after her death No! Duct tape was yanked from the victims' bottoms and pubic areas, and two of the victims were forced to smear Mineral Ice on their testicles, and then kick each other there, the report says. That decision ''let down and insulted the victims and their families,'' the report says. According to a local new report, two older students called the boy to the back of the bus and, in addition to the wedgie, punched the 13-year-old in the groin and stomach all as a part of an initiation ritual. Imagine your best friends making the school soccer team and you getting cut, because your not ready or there is no room. I am 13 years old and I am on the Friendswood junior high C-football team I am a second string slot receiver and starting strong safety and I 'm also a second string strong side linebacker it was our last game of the season,so we really wanted to go out on the win or a record for the season was one way in five losses and one tie,we hadn 't had a great season so we especially wanted to go out on a win. And his youth. On 11/4, the Mepham varsity football team won their home conference game against MacArthur (Levittown, NY) by a score of 14-7. We dont beat guysup., Some of his old teammates have gathered to buy drinksfrom him. His dadsaved his friends life that day. But the grand jury did not find the coaches criminally negligent. Hes been introuble before, that kid. There's coaches. And McElroy neverprevented him from playing on the varsity team. This password will be used to sign into all, I Inherited Millions From My Mother, and Everyone Knows, Shania Twain Gives Rare Update on Her Ex-Husband and Ex-BFF, Journey Should Probably Go Their Separate Ways, 10 Things That Delighted Us Last Week: From Glass Jars to Guayabera Shirts. On October 6, heannounced that that was his intention. We've received your submission. At this point, the victims would have already suffered numerous attacks. Hedoesnt have a senior season to put on hiscollege application., This guy comes to my job, says Andy.He says, Oh, Im in Mephamnow, maybe I should shove a pinecone up myass! I said, Thats notfunny. These guys on the team are gonna beharassed the rest of their fuckin lives., My son knows one of the boys who wasattacked, Mary says sadly. Throughout September, a question hung in the air:Would Wayne County district attorney Mark Zimmer trythe boys as adults, which would mean that each couldface up to twenty years in prison? They had hoped that the three assailants (Phil Sofia, Ken Carney, and Tom Diasparra) would be tried as adults for the crimes. Long Island high school rocked by lurid football hazing scandal Both told stories of defending their school when they were teased by students outside the district and cited the ''Mepham Pride'' buttons that they and many classmates have taken to wearing. Everyone laughs. Reichsteins wife,Kristina, then begged Didden to make an example of thelineman. You\'ll receive the next newsletter in your inbox. Nothing.". Future of Sayreville football coaches may hinge on supervision Mepham victims file suitCharge Central District officials knew about The crime scene evidence that convicted Alex Murdaugh Adds Jesse: Mepham kids say,Youre from Kennedy, and punch us.Theyre the bully school, the physical school.Even in middle school, we knew which kids were goingto Mepham and which to Kennedy.. For Carol's son, it doesn't end. Dangerous Minds - CBS News Thelinemans fathers death on October 5created one delay in moving the case forward; otherdelays have been due to the attorneys effortsto bring the case back to juvenile status, and tonegotiate their clients surrender into custody. But it really happened., McElroys lawyer vehemently denies almost everyaspect of Bergers story. Those individuals who just made the team now deal with a problem that happens mainly from the. Kevin McElroy, the man in charge of the football camp and Mepham High School's head coach, has remained silent for the last six months. Did I do anything to those kids?" At least one group of parents has decided they will continue to speak out. He had to tell people what happened to him," says Carol. McElroy says district policy discourages it: "To put a coach in the room, you're putting the coach or the adult right now at incredible risk of sexual charges.". Despite the linemans threats, noone could have anticipated what happened atcamp, Caramore told parents in a speech, adding thatwhatever happened wasnt hazing:None of us in Bellmore-Merrick has used thatterm to define what is, in fact, a brutalcrime., The hazing-or-not debate is a key factor in the legalbattles to come. On September 17, the Bellmore-Merrick Central HighSchool District Board of Education canceledMepham's football season. That boy was not hurt at camp, but other kids were. Colleges and the NCAA can make money selling jerseys and other souvenirs that might include the likeness of players, yet the actual players never receive a cent. Many have lost sight of the fact that baseball players are not the only athletes that face this life threatening addiction. This incident could have been foreseeable by the coaches, and possibly the administration, if the coach reported anything to the principal and athletic director. Copyright 2023 IPL.org All rights reserved. Travis Barkers Finger Is Now the Enema of Blink-182 Fans. Hes dangerous, hes terrifying, hes an extra in, How to Watch the 2023 Oscars Celebrate All 23 Categories Live Again. South Side. Trust me been there done that, the most regretted thing about school sports for many are tryouts. Into the locker! "Not once. Not, 'Coach, things aren't good over here.' Mary explodes. No one understands this better thanMark Alter, the lawyer for the alleged ringleader.The fact that its egregious allegationsdoes not necessarily mean its not a juvenilecase, says Alter. This was a sexual attack!, Are we gonna argue about this? Offscreen, he was one himself. The owner of the store posted a sign in his window earlier this month: ''We are Bellmore. The coaches, who slept in a cabin away from their players, said they knew nothing of the violence until a parent complained to school officials. Everybody knew I got hazed in the lockerroom, he says. Wesley?Wesley was a nasty rat bastard! But other voices emerge at the meeting, corroboratingthe victims contention that hazing is a fact oflife at Mepham. According to the report, ''a lack of accountability appears to permeate the entire structure of the administration and running of this camp program.'' My sonthinks its just a bad thing that went too far,too fast., Andy mentions what some people are sayingthatwhat happened at camp was part of a pattern of hazingat Mepham. One of the attackers was allowed to attend camp despite a history of disciplinary problems and not having a permission slip. There were no screams like that.". Involuntary deviate sexualintercourse. On 10/22, the Mepham varsity football team won their home conference game against South Side (Rockville Centre, NY) by a score of 49-18. display: none; Nassau County Girl Scouts fundraise for victims of quake in Syria, Turkey at Masjid Hamza, Powered by Creative Circle Media Solutions. He previously suffered a brain aneurysm on February 18, and was ultimately taken off life support. Mepham victims file suitCharge Central District officials knew about "They had bags of ice and they were bashing it all over his body until the bags broke. Youth sports are becoming too intense for young children to keep up with. Expect to be held accountablefor your choices and actions. Be truthful.From The Mepham Way, Mepham HighSchools honor code, 48 MINUTES OF HELL, A LIFETIME TO REMEMBERSlogan on a Mepham Pirates football T-shirt. When several parents received threatening letters after speaking out about the incident, emotions ratcheted higher. The sexual assaults that occurred last summer among members of a Long Island high school football team sprang from old traditions of violent hazing that coaches and school officials could not curb, according to a report handed up yesterday by a Pennsylvania grand jury. Moreover, they must spend money on equipment, clothing, and food (37). Werent theyalready on the right track? "The bottom line is, if we did anything wrong, we wouldn't be sitting here talking to you," says Cannestro. Soon after the first revelations of the attacks, the Reichsteins reached out to newspapers and television stations with their story. Bellmore Journal; Life Goes On but Is Altered After School Scandal 2023 NYP Holdings, Inc. All Rights Reserved, Canadian teacher with size-Z prosthetic breasts placed on paid leave, Buster Murdaugh got 'very drunk' with dad 2 months after mom, brother murdered: source, I'm a professional cleaner ditch these 4 household products immediately, Shoeless Ariana Madix awkwardly tries to avoid cheating Tom Sandoval, Prince Harry was scared to lose Meghan Markle after fight that led to therapy, Prince Harry says psychedelics are fundamental part of his life, Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant allegedly flashes gun at a strip club, Tom Sizemore And The Dangerous Burden of Desperation, Tom Sandoval, Raquel Leviss planned to tell Ariana Madix about affair. When parents came to an emergency meeting on September16 with the principal and superintendent, they heardnot mea culpas but accusations. He says the coach started yelling.Hes like, No! Report Says Hazing Culture Led to Attacks On 3 Athletes 2023 NYP Holdings, Inc. All Rights Reserved. This wasn't just something that happened when the lights went out.". "We went out. The problem was with thekidsand with the parents who brought them upthat way., Sothe parents. Ken Carney, 16, the ringleader of the attacks, was well-known by school administrators as a disciplinary problem. A day later, the threeboys were suspended, and a student demonstrationerupted behind the schoolto the delight of theTV crews camped out there. Its the kind of bar where people stillsmoke and no one cares. West Jersey Football League all-stars: United Division, 2022. Our community is being blamed. The Nassau Conference II showdown between these two unbeatens has . The boy was a member of the 2007 Charlton County High School junior varsity golf team. It was supposed to be fun, and glorious. *Sorry, there was a problem signing you up. You could just seehe had so much anger in him. What's gonna come out of this is another parent is gonna say, 'Oh, I'm gonna make sure there's no hazing at my school.'" This has allowed more and more players to look to PEDs in order to gain an edge over their opponents. "He was waiting for them [the coaches] to come in and save him, but no one came," says Carol's husband, Vinny. No. If you do something wrong, youd better go home and pack your toothbrush because youll pay the consequences, he told the teen. Privacy Policy and Students have pushed their bodies to the limits, causing extreme injury that will hold them back from sports in the future. My sons not. Thanks for contacting us.