Seven junior varsity high school football players have been charged with second-degree assault following a locker room bullying incident on Sept. 25 in Maryland.
Authorities charged the Howard High School students, all between the ages of 14 and 16, via juvenile referral. The investigation is ongoing into possible additional incidents and additional people involved, and the team has been suspended until further notice.
The alleged incident occurred before practice on Sept. 25, when April Bridges says the students went unsupervised for an hour. Videos provided to the Scripps News Group station in Baltimore show several members of the team grabbing, picking up and trying to force another team member — Bridges' son — into the toilet.
"It's heartbreaking; it's really a true nightmare to endure this," Bridges said. "They tried to stuff him in a locker. Then they tried to dump him in the toilet. Everybody's in the locker room staring around with their cameras, laughing and chanting."
Bridges says her son's wallet was also taken during the incident. He was so badly hurt that he had to be taken to the hospital.
"My once energetic, happy-going son is depressed. We haven't been able to sleep through all of this," Bridges said.
Bridges first learned something was wrong when her son came home early Friday afternoon in tears. She learned through a friend of her other son that his bike — a recent birthday present — had been stolen and vandalized.
When she came to the field at Howard High, she was surprised to find practice was still on. There, she learned much more had happened, and it was all caught on video.
Bridges also learned of other incidents. She said a student had brought a wrench to disassemble her son's bike and hid it in the ceiling of the locker room. During another incident, she said students pulled down his pants. Another time, she said students sprayed bug spray inside her son's football helmet.
Her concerns following the Sept. 25 events, she says, were brushed off by coaching staff despite some team members and another parent informing them what had happened.
Bridges called the police, who are investigating, as well as the school.
In an email sent to families on Monday, Principal Allen Cosentino wrote that the program was suspended and that due to the involvement of minor children, the school is limited in what information can be shared. He promised to continue to provide status updates on the program.
Each member of the JV football team is being met with individually, according to Cosentino's latest messages to families.
Bridges says the suspension is a step in the right direction but is calling for full accountability, including criminal charges.
"He's been beaten, battered, kidnapped, assaulted, sexually assaulted, false imprisonment, robbed," Bridges said. "I would like charges pressed to the full extent of what occurred to my child."
This story was originally published by Blair Sabol at the Scripps News Group station in Baltimore.
