Is There Hazing In High School? Students Arrested In Texas
In a small town in Texas outside of San Antonio, 13 high school student athletes — seven juveniles and six 18-year-olds — were arrested for allegedly hazing students in the locker rooms, local news sources reported Wednesday. The violent hazing, which included sodomy and sexual assault with soda cans, Gatorade bottles and flashlights were committed by male athletes across several athletic programs at La Vernia High School. One incident included the hazing of a 16-year-old teammate with the threaded end of a carbon dioxide tank as part of "initiation" into the varsity football team.
The case has up to 10 victims, according to local officials. The case was given to The Texas Rangers earlier this month to assure neutrality, since many local authorities knew the victims involved.
A federal lawsuit issued Tuesday claimed coaches and high school representatives knew about the hazing that occurred and allowed it to persist. Hazing rituals were part of the school’s football team and school culture for at least 10 years, the suit said.
"The teams’ coaches have sanctioned these rituals, while other school officials, including La Vernia ISD and the school’s principal, athletic director and coaches turned a blind eye toward the abuse, even after the abuse was reported to them," the lawsuit read. "Indeed, the plaintiffs are but a fraction of the students who have been physically and sexually assaulted pursuant to these sadistic hazing rituals which include rape, sodomy, unlawful sexual penetration and sexual abuse."
One student, called "Child Doe," was repeatedly abused and subjected to new "initiation" procedures. He saught damages for medical expenses, physical pain and mental anguish.
La Vernia ISD Superintendent Jose Moreno told a local news source via email Wednesday the district would "continue working closely with the authorities as they conduct a full and thorough investigation."
Moreno "had a duty to know about the hazing rituals in question, and to implement policies, practices and procedures … to protect students like Child Doe from harm, as well as a duty to report all such incidents or suspicion of such incidents within 48 hours to the proper authorities as required by state law," the lawsuit read.
Moreno said new protocols were being put in place so students could report misconduct easier, the Associated Press News reported Wednesday.
As more students were arrested this week, the small town Texas community made efforts to move forward and heal.
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