Hazing Charges Hit Woburn High Football Program

Woburn MA

18 December, 2021

1:45 PM

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WOBURN, MA — The family of a Woburn 14-year-old who said he was threatened, punched and sexually assaulted in a school locker room is criticizing Woburn Public Schools, Woburn police and the Middlesex District Attorney's Office for lack of action on the incidents, according to a Boston Globe report. The Globe reported on Saturday that the freshman said he was attacked in a locker room and grabbed by the genitals in an incident caught on video following a September game. The report said the freshman was then harassed for months both physically and through text messages, leading to him dropping out of school out of fear for his own safety. While school officials told the Globe their response was "comprehensive and thorough" and the DA's Office said there is an ongoing investigation, the family said it is outraged at what they say was relatively light school discipline against the football players involved in the assault and the lack of any criminal charges at those they say are responsible for the assault and ensuing harassment. "We acknowledge and support the student and family that had the strength to come forward to report this deeply troubling matter," Woburn Superintendent of Schools Matt Crowley told the Globe. "We wish to state, without reservation, that the Woburn Public Schools took this matter seriously as soon as we learned about it and that our response was comprehensive and thorough." The Woburn hazing accusations are the latest in a series of troubling charges of inappropriate behavior within high school athletic programs in Greater Boston. In Danvers, a member of the boys hockey program publicly accused teammates of using racial slurs and engaging in homophobic hazing with a sex toy during the 2019-2020 season. This week, the Danvers High wrestling program was suspended after an investigation into a fight that allegedly occurred over a racial slur led to the discovery of a team Snapchat group that included racist and biased language. In Peabody, members of the football team were disciplined last week after a video showed players unsupervised in a locker room last month using a racial slur and mimicking sexual acts. An investigation into that incident found players violated the school and athletic code of conduct, but that the actions did not legally rise to the level of bullying or hazing.