Woburn school officials were aware of alleged bullying in the high school football program for several years before 14-year-old freshman Johnathan Coucelos was attacked by a swarm of teammates in the locker room last fall, according to court records and interviews with former players and parents. TONIGHT IS THE SCHOOL COMMITTEE MEETING HERE AT HAV. The player alleges Woburn head coach Jack Belcher instigated the kick by encouraging older teammates to in Belchers words toughen up younger ones. Kevin Couceles says cellphone video shared on social media shows his then 14-year-old son being assaulted in the locker room after a football game last Former Woburn High School football player Johnathan Coucelos said he was assaulted and bullied by teammates in the locker room, and the school did nothing to protect him. But off the field, an investigation is underway, Sources tell News Center Five Police are investigating whether a juvenile was hazed and sexually assaulted at the school in an incident involving the football team. Student leaders of the Woburn team took a stand in recent days supporting Belcher. The middlesex county district attorney's office says woburn police notified them about the allegations, and are investigating. All rights reserved (About Us). #ada-button-frame { ""A freshman getting dragged down on the floor, them pulling down his pants and pulling down the other dude's pants and humping him in the face. An inexperienced and ill-trained volunteer assistant football coach failed to inform his supervisors at Woburn Memorial High School after a 14-year-old freshman player, Johnathan Coucelos, reported last fall that he was jumped by teammates in a locker room, according to an independent investigators report obtained by the Globe. I told Belcher hes an adult bully and shouldnt be coaching anybodys kids, the parent said. Black News Hour presented by The Boston Globe. There should be a lot more charges," he said. 2023, Hearst Television Inc. on behalf of WCVB-TV. GBH News brings you the stories, local voices, and big ideas that shape our world. Lowell staged a miraculous comeback in last year s contest, scoring 34 points in the second half to stun the Hillies, 41-36. "I am alarmed, concerned and frankly disgusted by what I have been told and by the video that I was shown," Fiorentini said in a statement Wednesday night. A Woburn family is seeking charges against teenagers accused of assaulting their son in a high school locker room last fall. Follow us so you don't miss a thing! Belcher, 60, has been familiar to many in the Woburn area since he was a three-sport star at neighboring Stoneham High School in the late 1970s. KYMA KECY is committed to providing a forum for civil and constructive conversation. Just no, they're kids temperament, that stuff. In one well-publicized incident of bullying last year, several members of the Woburn High School football team were eventually arraigned in Lowell Juvenile Court on charges stemming from an assault of a 14-year-old freshman player in the locker room. One football player was accused of indecent assault for allegedly yanking down Johnathans pants and touching his genitals in the locker room episode. On Sept. 25, 2018, three years to the day In the most disturbing incident, the parent said, her son was a freshman when four older teammates attacked him in a school hallway after Belcher allegedly encouraged stronger players to toughen up those perceived as weaker. The MIAA rejected the request, saying it does not investigate internal complaints involving member schools. Woburn Police have assigned a detective to the case. (CNN) - Police are investigating whether a juvenile football player was hazed, and sexually assaulted at school. "It was gross. I want to cry every time I see that. An incident serious enough to put the Haverhill football coaching staff on paid administrative leave, and initiate a probe into the matter by the citys Police Department. You can review our Community Guidelines by clicking here. Following reports of the misconduct, Attorney General Maura Healey convened a conference of policymakers to address the abuses. It was disgusting. "As these matters concern allegations involving minors, there was and remains much we cannot say publicly about this situation," Crowley said. Couceles said his wife decided to pull their son out of the Woburn school for his safety in December. Today and every day, I urge every member of our community to be kind to one another and do everything in their power to be part of making our community kinder and stronger. WE NEED TO DETERMINE HOW THIS HAPPENED AND WHAT WE CAN DO SO THIS NEVER HAPPENS AGAIN. He left his job as a paraprofessional at the Woburn school in April. Seven Massachusetts students charged in connection with alleged assaults on high school football teammate. The Globe's most recent sports headlines delivered to your inbox every morning. Crowley said the school district consulted with the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) and had a consultant from the Anti-Hazing collaborative work with all of their winter sports coaches. While charges are pending for some students, Couceles says the coaches and school leadership should be held accountable, too. 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. In response, Woburn school superintendent Matt Crowley issued a statement that said, I was informed by the High School administration that there was one allegation of bullying made against Coach Jack Belcher. >> IT IS KIND OF DISTURBING AND NASTY. Instead, Belcher instructed the traumatized player to return to the field for 35 more minutes of contact drills, his complaint states. Seven teenagers are facing criminal charges in connection to a hazing investigation in Woburn, Massachusetts. Moving forward, he said all of the districts coaches will be required to undertake extensive supplemental training. "It was pretty nasty, making us look bad. 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. HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL Bullying claims date back years in Woburn High School football program By Bob Hohler Globe Staff,Updated February 26, 2022, With your support, GBH will continue to innovate, inspire and connect through reporting you value that meets todays moments. The 60-page report includes statements by Chase Andrews, the first-year volunteer assistant who was 23 at the time, and head freshman coach Chris Scichilone that they were not formally trained about hazing before Coucelos was accosted. While the coach generally treated his son relatively well because he was one of the teams better players Logan is now a quarterback at Fitchburg State University Wilson said he was aware of Belchers practice of pitting older, stronger players against other teammates. We couldn't do it without you. racial slurs and engaging in homophobic hazing, Danvers High wrestling program was suspended. Crowley said they have reached out to the Couceles family. Somehow, ganging up or picking on someone half ones size has come to symbolize the kind of toughness required to be successful on a football field, basketball court or hockey rink. This content is imported from Facebook. Thats a perversion of sports culture, which instead of building character, produces cowardly thugs. Woburn police are seeking assault charges in Lowell Juvenile Court against seven Woburn students, including five football players, for the alleged locker room attack and two subsequent incidents in which Johnathan was the alleged victim. What happens when providers turn to medication first? They explicitly and repeatedly informed the players of those prohibitions both prior to and subsequent to the [attack]., Crowleys assertion appears contrary to head freshman coach Chris Scichilones statement in the investigative report that training related to hazing or Title IX only occurred after the incident and Andrewss statement that he did not receive any formal training with respect to hazing until after the incident.. While arraignments have begun in Lowell Juvenile Court for seven Woburn students, including five football players, charged with assaulting Coucelos, his parents say the report underscores that Woburn school officials head football coach Jack Belcher, athletic director Jim Duran, and principal Jessica Callanan, among them failed to adequately protect their son. The Woburn hazing accusations are the latest in a series of troubling charges of inappropriate behavior within high school athletic programs in Greater Boston. 2023 by KYMA / NPG of Yuma-El Centro Broadcasting. To my knowledge, there have been no other bullying allegations made to the administration regarding this individual.. Parents of the boy who allegedly was kicked in 2018 also faulted the school administration. "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. THIS IS VIDEO OF THE ALLEGED HAZING INCIDENT IN THE FOOTBALL LOCKROOM. 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. The family, meanwhile, is asking a judge to review a Woburn District Court clerk magistrates decision to reject applications for criminal complaints against Callanan and Woburn Detective Edward Fumicello, the school resource officer, for allegedly allowing video surveillance footage of the hallway outside the locker room and coachs offices to be deleted after they viewed the recording, despite an ongoing investigation. }Customer Service, An inexperienced and ill-trained volunteer assistant football coach failed to inform his supervisors at Woburn Memorial High School after a 14-year-old freshman player, Johnathan Coucelos, reported last fall that he was jumped by teammates in a locker room, according to. A video of the incident allegedly shows members of the Haverhill High School football team hazing a teenage boy. Woburn High made no substantive efforts to curtail the bullying, they stated. James Austin's son is on the football team. Now, police are filing criminal charges against seven students accused of the assault. Hahn said he provided notice to the city and school district about their intent to sue. He was harassed by a number of different students, said Hahn. "As school leaders, we acknowledge and have offered support to the student and family that had the strength to come forward to report this deeply troubling matter," the superintendent wrote. But, the former student said, he soon became disturbed by Belchers coaching methods, which he described as abusive. Bob Hohler can be reached at robert.hohler@globe.com. I didn't like what I saw," said student Elliot Batista. I also told the principal, who didnt stop him.. "It's just so wrong how they're handling it. "I share in the collective shock and outrage regarding this incident.". Then I saw it boil over into the locker room because it caused kids to literally hate each other and fight off the field.. I JUST THINK ITS AWFUL. What happened to that boy in the locker room was heinous, said Lee Wilson, whose son Logan played for Belcher and graduated in 2020. Its also heinous that Belcher kept those kids on the team.. Detective assigned to investigate allegations of hazing involving Woburn High School sports team. REPORTER: THE MAYOR SAYS I SUPPORT HIRING AN OUTSIDE FIRM TO -- TO CONDUCT THE INVESTIGATION. And at some point, he had to leave the school for his safety. 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. Andrews is gone. His parents made that decision to withdraw him from the school because it was no longer safe for him to be there. The three-year initiative is called Transforming Narratives of Gun Violence. CNN A high school near Pennsylvanias capital has canceled its upcoming football season over reports of hazing by members of the schools football team. REPORTER: THEY ARE KICKING OFF THAT PROGRAM DECEMBER 8, EVOLVING -- INVOLVING THE MASS ASSOCIATION OF SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENTS IN THE NORTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY SPORTS AND SOCIETY GROUP. There was little to no supervision in the locker room, he said. Coucelos, who is 14, told Jim Braude on Greater Boston Monday that his life has changed drastically since the attack, and the harassment has not stopped. Nelson also determined the groping did not meet the narrow definitions of sexual misconduct under the Title IX law. Coucelos, fearing for his safety, has transferred to Cambridge Matignon School. Woburn Police have assigned a detective to the case. At the conclusion of the Title IX investigation, a second investigation, in the form of an administrative review and policy analysis will be conducted by a second outside agency, a firm headed by former Massachusetts Secretary of Public Safety and Security Daniel Bennett, Former State Police Colonel Kerry Gilpin and Attorney John Benzan. After News Of Anti-Semitism On Duxburys Football Team, Where Does The Town Go From Here? 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. We're live in Woburn. The matter has also been referred to the Haverhill Police Department for further investigation, according to the school officials' message. An inexperienced and ill-trained volunteer assistant football coach failed to inform his supervisors at Woburn Memorial High School after a 14-year-old freshman Get all the latest from Sanditon on GBH Passport, How one Brookline studio helps artists with disabilities thrive. The Globe does not identify victims of alleged sexual assaults unless they give their consent. An alleged hazing incident is under investigation at the high school in Woburn, Massachusetts. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. A hazing investigation at Woburn Memorial High School has led to charges against seven high school students. I wish to be unequivocal in the fact that I join every member of the WPS administration in condemning physical and sexual violence in all forms," Crowley said. Coucelos alleged he also was punched by another student on a school bus, but the investigation determined Coucelos himself was the aggressor. He was called a snitch. I feel like parents need to be more involved and acknowledge who their kids friends are. LEAGUE 4-1 2nd Middlesex - Liberty. It was very nasty," said student Felix Molina. It's really not a bad school. "A freshman getting dragged down on the floor, them pulling down his pants and pulling down the other dude's pants and humping him in the face. And in Woburn, police are "investigating whether a juvenile was hazed and sexually assaulted at the school in an incident involving the football team." Bullying and hazing happen when you pit players against each other like he does, Wilson said. "He just wants to be by himself all the time. Ten football captains six seniors and four juniors circulated a letter to news outlets, saying they were not trying to minimize any allegations that are being investigated by the proper people., In fact, we all condemn bullying of any kind, the captains wrote. juvenile justice system handle the Woburn bullying case? READINGS MATT BLASI (83) reaches to make a catch before Woburns Travis Kanoni (4) can move in. A Woburn school psychologists evaluation states he suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, causing him significant symptoms of anxiety and depression, due to the violence he endured. The Rams released him in training camp before he was drafted by the Boston Breakers of the fledgling United States Football League. 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. How many examples of this appalling behavior will it take to preempt the next hazers in waiting? The Globe's most recent sports headlines delivered to your inbox every morning. It was dirty. Listen Live: Classic and Contemporary Celtic, Listen Live: Cape, Coast and Islands NPR Station, A reporter's indulgence no longer a secret The NBA's Damian Lillard made me a fan, Pandemic food assistance that held back hunger comes to an end, The March Drop: Stay on the move with Oscar reels and roller derbies, MIT takes steps to stop foreign espionage, but some faculty say it goes too far, Bostons police oversight office has yet to uphold a single civilian complaint. It's not good for our school. He was attacked in the bathroom. "I am alarmed, concerned and frankly disgusted by what I have been told and by the video that I was shown," Fiorentini said in a statement Wednesday night. "We need to determine how this happened and what we can do so that this never happens again," Fiorentini said. No one was against it, Hanley described the player as saying. The committee will likely go into an executive session in order to determine the next steps that should be taken in the hazing investigation. Unlike Callanan, who told Hanley she feels terrible for Johnathan, Belcher expressed less empathy, saying he was aware of Coucelos before the attack in a negative way, as a pain in the neck or wise-guy.. >> I DONT KNOW WHAT IS WRONG WITH KIDS TODAY. Many Woburn residents have expressed anger that Belcher permitted three of the alleged assailants, including the player facing a possible indecent assault charge, to remain on the football team through a prestigious Thanksgiving week game at Fenway Park. Saturday's statement did not provide details about the nature of the allegation and did not specifically mention the football team. CLICK HERE TO TURN ON NOTIFICATIONS. Hazing Charges Hit Woburn High Football Program The family of a freshman player said the 14-year-old was threatened, punched and sexually assaulted in }Customer Service. THE MASSACHUSETTS INTERSCHOLASTIC ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION CREATING A PROGRAM WITH THE ATTORNEY GENERALS OFFICE TO STOP HAZING AND TO REMIND STUDENTS PLAYING SPORTS IS A PRIVILEGE. Lowell Highs annual Thanksgiving Day football game against Haverhill has been canceled due to an alleged hazing incident involving Haverhill players that was The Woburn case is one of numerous violent incidents in high school sports over the last year that have captured the attention of government officials, civil rights groups, and student safety organizations. Police seek charges against seven students after Woburn locker room incident, After Woburn football player endures multiple alleged assaults, parents left outraged by official response. Belcher told Hanley he had left the building before the incident. Because the investigation involves minors, both the Woburn Police Department and the Middlesex District Attorneys Office told NBC10 Boston they cannot provide information about the case. ""The boys involved in this disgusting incident should be immediately permanently removed from the team," the mayor said in his statement. 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