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Police: No charges to be filed despite ‘valid' allegations of hazing on Leechburg HS basketball team

Leechburg, Pa. — No charges are being filed despite authorities finding that allegations of hazing by the Leechburg High School boys basketball team members are “valid,” the Leechburg police chief said in a statement released Wednesday night.

Chief Michael W. Diebold said the investigation revealed that older players have hazed younger players, using a stick named the “yoshi stick” since 2006. The use of the stick was sexual in manner; however, the most recently reported incident in December 2015 allegedly involved no removal of clothing, Diebold said.

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The chief said it is also alleged that there are current assistant coaches who are former student athletes who either participated or had been victimized in these incidents in years past.

“It is alleged these assistant coaches should have known of the activity and engaged in a course of conduct to stop such activity. Investigation and witness statements do indicate that current non-paid assistant coaches did have previous knowledge of these circumstances and did describe them as a tradition,” Diebold wrote in his statement.

The police chief said that after consultation with the Armstrong County District Attorney’s Office and a careful and thorough review of all Pennsylvania statutes - under which hazing in a high school or elementary school is not criminalized - it was determined that criminal charges would not be filed at this time against any student involved in the December 2015 incident.

“The decision to not file charges is not at all based upon the validity of the allegations,” Diebold wrote.

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It’s a conclusion Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape says is not uncommon.

"For some reason, our country calls it hazing if it happens in a locker room, and we call it sexual assault if it happens somewhere else,” Kristen Houser with PCAR said.

Alison Hall with Pittsburgh Action Against Rape called the Leechburg police and district attorney’s decision to not file charges appalling.

"Victims did come forward with this and they did report and they did talk about what happened to them and nothing was done,” she said. "We see a lot of adult victims who were hazed as part of sports teams, and ultimately, they're impacted by it."

WPXI legal analyst Phil Dilucente said the district attorney and investigators took a conservative view of the law.

“Certainly other statutes would have fit potentially for a crime to be committed, but the district attorney and the school have determined that the students involved did not have the state of mind in order to meet that criteria,” Dilucente said.

The investigation, though, is to remain ongoing indefinitely.

“Due to the duration that these incidents took place and the possibility of additional individuals coming forward as witnesses or victims, this investigation shall remain ongoing indefinitely,” Diebold wrote.

Leechburg Mayor Shawn Lerch released the following statement regarding the situation Wednesday night:

“First, I would like to say my thoughts are with those that have been affected by the troubling incidents that have been occurring within the Leechburg High School Varsity Boys Basketball program.

“I have been thoroughly briefed and informed in regards to the investigation and its outcome at this point. I strongly concur with the Armstrong County District Attorney’s Office and the Leechburg Police Department in the findings that have resulted thus far from this investigation.

“I personally find it incomprehensible that these actions have been able to take place for as long as they have and school officials were clueless to it.  As a community we trust our school staff and officials with the well-being of our children. I cannot even begin to describe the level of incompetence that I feel would be required to allow this situation to grow as it has.

“Furthermore, I call on the Leechburg School Board to take immediate action, as it should have from the beginning, to ensure this matter and those in positions of responsibility addressed appropriately and to ensure the public that everything possible is being done to stop such ridiculous actions from occurring in the future.”

In response to the mayor’s statement, Leechburg Area School District officials released their own statement, which read, in part: "The district asks that it be afforded its opportunity to complete its investigation now that law enforcement has finished and that it be judged on all of the facts as they ultimately are determined to be, not one's speculation or perception."

Armstrong District Attorney Scott Andreassi also released a statement Thursday morning about the decision to not file charges:

“It is clear from the investigation that this type of activity has been going on at the Leechburg School District for many years. While the contact between the students was unwelcome, it simply did not rise to the level of ‘assault’ as defined in the criminal statute. According to the statements provided, no injuries were inflicted nor was there any intention to inflict injury. The actions of the students can be best characterized as stupid, childish and immature, but not criminal."

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