'Harlem Shake' Video Could Get Some Avon Lake Baseball Players in Trouble

Some members of the Avon Lake High School baseball team will face some sort of discipline after vulgar footage of the team was posted on YouTube, the popular media site that is open to the public.

The video featured team members performing to the popular Harlem Shake.

The 30-second video opens with about a dozen members of the team readying for play, while one featured student simulates a sex act, while dressed, on a trashcan. After approximately 15 seconds, the entire team is featured dancing, some in compromising positions and some simply dancing. 

The video was taken down March 11 as soon as school officials were notified.

The video appears to have been taken in the Avon Lake locker room, where a large “AL” logo was visible on the floor throughout the footage.

The video, uploaded March 4, had almost 700 views by March 11, including some from Avon Lake parents.

Avon-Avon Lake Patch was tipped off by a reader happened across the video while searching for Shoremen sports.

“While doing a Google search for Avon Lake sports ... a suggestion came up on the latest video craze, the Harlem Shake done by the Avon Lake High School Baseball team,” the tipster said by email. “I thought it might be fun to watch it. Boy was I wrong! It was disgusting.”

Hours later, another reader notified Patch with similar concerns.

Superintendent of Schools Bob Scott said the students involved will face consequences.

"It was completely inappropriate and appropriate actions will be taken,” Scott said.

The matter has been turned over to include the principal and athletic director.

“Generally, our kids are good kids, but we understand they sometimes make decisions that aren’t very wise,” Scott said. “They will obviously be disciplined.”

Scott said the district will start from a historic standpoint and see what other kind of discipline has been handed out previously.

Discipline could come from two places. Scott said the school will mete out punishment, but since the footage was shot in the locker room, there could also be discipline from the athletic office.

According to the Avon Lake handbook, students could face discipline on a number of fronts, including a Sexual Conduct offense that states, “Students are not permitted to engage in sexual conduct or contact while on school premises, at any school sponsored event, or while otherwise under school authority.”

A second offense under “Abusive, harassing, bullying, cyber bullying and/or disrespectful behavior,” states, “Students shall not engage in any obscene, abusive, profane, or degrading gestures or expressions…(more deleted)."

The handbook also states “appropriate consequences for the individual student will be based on the type of offense, the frequency and the seriousness of the conduct violation, the circumstances of the violation, and the student’s behavior history.”

Determination of what penalty to apply will be made by the appropriate administrator, consistent with Ohio law.