LI School Lacrosse Player Assaulted, Hazed At Practice: Court Docs

DIX HILLS, NY — A family is seeking justice for their 13-year-old son after they say he was the victim of an assault and hazing.

The reported hazing left their son with "severe personal and psychological injuries" following a lacrosse practice sanctioned by the Half Hollow Hills Central School District this winter, their lawyer, Michael Janus of Garden City-based Janus Law, wrote in a notice of claim.

The Half Hollow Hills Central School District public relations director said they were unable to comment "due to pending and ongoing litigation."

According to documents, the hazing took place between 3:30 and 5 p.m. Feb. 11 during a school-sanctioned lacrosse practice at a facility in Commack and has continued in school, during transportation and other school-related events.

The boy was "assaulted with lacrosse balls, pushed, shoved, placed in a chokehold, violently thrown to the ground, and while on the ground, stomped on by a fellow player with his cleats, verbally abused, and taunted," the notice of claim states.

The claim alleges that the assigned coaches did not supervise and ensure a safe environment during practice. The coaches were accused of leaving before practice ended, with the unsupervised students then assaulting the teenager, according to the documents.

The practice where the alleged hazing took place featured both varsity and junior varsity players; their son was a West Hollow Middle School student scheduled to begin attending Half Hollow Hills High School West later this year, the boy's father said. The varsity team features student-athletes from both high schools in the district.

The players were not wearing equipment at the practice beside helmets and gloves because a varsity player suffered a separated shoulder approximately a week prior to the Feb. 11 practice, prompting coaches to lead practices with no physical contact until the season began, the notice of claim said.
The incident began when a senior player was unhappy with the way the boy threw a lacrosse ball, causing the senior to slam the boy up against the wall, the notice of claim said.

The coaches were allegedly present at practice when the boy was slammed against the wall, Janus said.

The coaches then left practice 15 minutes early, the boy's father said. He said he and other parents saw them walk out from the building before the players did.

After the coaches left, an eighth grader began shooting lacrosse balls at the 13-year-old, who, like the other student-athletes, was not wearing body protection, the boy's father said. A junior then started shooting balls at the boy, and one hit his chest, knocking the wind out of him, he said.

"He was crying for help," the father told Patch.

Another varsity player, a senior, then put his son in a chokehold, he said.

"[My son] couldn't breathe," he said. "He was crying, saying he's trying to pull [the senior] off of him and then slammed him to the ground."

And then a fifth player — another senior — stomped on his son while wearing cleats, the boy's parents said. He was stomped "all up and down his spine," the boy's mother said.

Following the attack on Feb. 11, the student continued to "suffer harassment, intimidation and retaliation at school by members of the lacrosse team," and the claim alleges that the Half Hollow Hills School District "failed to address it, intervene, control it and put an end to it."

The family, from Melville, is looking to recover monetary damages after they say their son was assaulted, hazed, and bullied by members of the school district's varsity lacrosse team, according to the notice of claim. The claim alleges that the school district showed "negligence, carelessness and recklessness" through its employees, administrators and coaching staff, who "failed in its duty" to protect the teenager from being attacked by the senior players.

A lawsuit could be filed as soon as this summer, once the firm is legally allowed to do so, Janus said.

His father said that his son came into the car after practice, visibly sweaty and upset. His son said he did not want to return to practice, he said. After questioning his son, the father found "these blotch marks" on his back left by the senior's cleats, he said.

He called 911, and the police, EMT and ambulance arrived at the boy's home to take statements; their son was taken to the hospital, his mother said.

"He came home bruised, broken, and asking why no one was protecting him," she said. "We're a family grounded in strong faith, values, and ethics, and we're at the point where we won't stay silent."

His mother said she is "tormented" over the idea of pursuing criminal charges against the student-athletes accused of attacking her son because of the impact it could have on their own futures.

However, the parents have started the process of filing criminal charges against those involved in the alleged attack, Janus said.

The morning after the practice, the family spoke with the coach, they said. The boy's father said the coach told them that the coaching staff has a "special interest" in their son, who is an "amazing player and a good kid," but that the team captains told the coaches they were "fooling around" and having "good banter."

The boy's father the coach fell silent when he asked if they had seen the photos of their son's body following the practice.

Janus said an email was sent to the attorneys for the school district with the names of the players accused of assaulting the boy, as well as the coaches. Janus and the family did not hear back from the district's attorneys after a month, he said.

The boy's mother said she called the district to notify administration that her son was not going to school because he was allegedly physically assaulted at the lacrosse practice.

"The schools, the coaches, the district, they knew and they turned their backs," she said. "You know, this is like David facing Goliath, but we believe in the truth. We're not going to back down. And no child should ever have to feel unsafe in a place that's meant to protect them. My son came home and from that day and on, said, 'Why did they do this to me? Why isn't anyone doing anything about it?' Because his life stopped, you know? This broke him."

The student suffered "severe emotional and psychological trauma, including anxiety, depression, and PTSD, physical injuries requiring medical treatment, academic decline, and loss of confidence in the safety of the school environment," the notice of claim states.

"To me, it makes no sense, except they're just trying to keep it quiet so lacrosse season can continue on its merry way," Janus said.

The family said they have no choice but to find a private school for their son to attend or move out of the Half Hollow Hills School District. While their son has continued to attend school in the months following the practice, he will not be attending classes in the district after this school year, they said.

His mother said her son has been bullied on the bus since the incident.

"He's constantly tormented," she said. "We're trying to support him. He's a strong kid. His life has been turned upside down. He's lost lacrosse, which has been his life; and our life with him."

The mother said she spoke with the Half Hollow Hills School District about the "ongoing bullying" her son faces. She added tht because lacrosse was taken from her son, his spirit has been broken.

"Not only physical, but mental. His whole life has been devastated forever at this point," she said. "How do you recover from something like this? You remember this for the rest of your life."

Janus said there is "no excuse for deliberately assaulting someone or stepping on someone's back."

"Unfortunately, this is not an isolated incident," Janus said. "It wasn't a harmless prank. It wasn't banter. During practice, [the son] made a bad pass, and [a senior] slammed him into the wall, and that was a person going on a full scholarship. I'm not condoning it, but in the heat of the moment, athletes do things they aren't proud of. This was a deliberate attack. A violent hazing incident that took place during a school-sanctioned practice. Unfortunately, he is now physically and emotionally scarred. He no longer participates in lacrosse, which is something he's been doing since he was 5 years old. And the coaches left early. If the coaches hadn't left early and provided a safe environment, it probably wouldn't have happened."

The boy's mother said not only have the players accused of being involved in the beating faced no consequences, they have been "rewarded with constant daily social media accolades" in connection with the lacrosse team. She pointed to a community concept calls "Hills Pride," which means a shared pride of being from the Half Hollow Hills school community.

"We've been Hills pride," she said. "And it was broken, it was taken away, it's done ... Think about it: Your hazers are 'Hills Pride.' This is what is 'Hills Pride.'"

"The silence is more than deafening," the boy's father said. "It's quite reprehensible and it's embarrassing for us to be in the community."

The third page of the Half Hollow Hills School District Code of Conduct defines bullying, harassment, hazing and other terms. Hazing was defined as "...harassment which produces public humiliation, physical or emotional discomfort, bodily injury or public ridicule or creates a situation where public humiliation, physical or emotional discomfort, bodily injury or ridicule is likely to occur."

Janus and the boy's family said the district's code of conduct was violated when the alleged attack took place.

"If you have a code of conduct, what is the point of having everyone sign it?" Janus said. "Especially every athlete sign it, if it's not enforced and adhered to?"

The boy's father said his son has suffered nightmares and has not slept well in the months following the alleged hazing; he has since taken up pickleball as an exercise form.

"We have an alpha athlete who's playing pickleball," his mother said.

In the face of the "betrayal" from the Half Hollow Hills school community, the boy's father said his family has leaned on its faith "through the continued prayers of our family to our lord and savior, Jesus Christ."

"We draw strength," he said. "We pray for healing and courage and that our son, especially as well as our entire family, will rise above this painful chapter. We speak out today because hazing and bullying in sports academia and beyond is a rampant. It is often ignored, tolerated or even glorified. But it cannot continue. We urge this community, this district and everywhere else, to do better for the safety, dignity and future of all students and student athletes."