Viera High School hazing incident: Brevard County Sheriff's Office opens investigation

BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. - The Brevard County Sheriff's Office has opened an investigation into an alleged hazing incident among the Viera High School football team last week, which led to the school's football coach being relieved of duty and the entire football program indefinitely suspended.

"Currently our agency is conducting a complete and thorough criminal investigation into the incident by interviewing all parties involved and collecting evidence and statements from those with immediate knowledge of what occurred," Sheriff Ivey said in a statement. You can read his full statement below.

From there, he said, the case will be forwarded to the State Attorney's Office, who will then determine whether or not to file formal charges. 

"While there are without question varied opinions on the incident and how it should be addressed, that decision is best made once all of the facts are known and the incident can be reviewed by our State Attorney for further action," he said.

A closed-door meeting Monday night

District officials have scheduled a closed-door meeting with non-suspended football players and their parents on Monday night. A spokesperson for the district told FOX 35 that journalists and reporters will not be allowed inside the meeting or on school property during the meeting.

On Sunday, Superintendent Dr. Mark Rendell confirmed in a statement that the high school's football coach had been relieved of his duties and that the entire football program had been suspended until further notice following an alleged hazing incident involving some football players.

"We have spent the past several days investigating the hazing incident involving members of the Viera High football team. Today, we have made the decision to suspend all Viera High football team activities (varsity and junior varsity) until further notice and we have relieved the varsity head coach of his duties until further notice," he said.

What the alleged video appears to show

That incident was allegedly captured on video and posted on social media. FOX 35 has decided not to show the video to protect the identity of the alleged victim, the disturbing nature of the video, and because no arrests or charges have been announced.

The video appears to have been recorded in a locker room. It shows what appears to be at least one student – a boy – on the ground as several other students encircle him and shout at him, while other students appear to perform a sexually-suggestive act on him.

Timeline: Here's what allegedly happened and when

Sheriff Wayne Ivey provided a general timeline of what the alleged events happened at Viera High School.

According to Sheriff Ivey's statement:

• The incident was reported to Brevard County Sheriff's Office as a "hazing incident."
• The alleged incident possibly happened on August 14, he said
• School administration reportedly did not learn of the alleged incident until August 16
• On August 17, the "administration took immediate action to ensure the safety of the students who were targeted, address those responsible for the incident, and review any failure of staff or policy, that could have prevented the incident from happening."
• On August 20, Superindent Dr. Rendell released a lengthy statement confirming the football head has been relieved of duty and that the football program had been suspended

Board member: Football should be canceled for the school year

At least one member of the Brevard Public Schools board has called for the football program to be suspended for the rest of the school year.

"There is no scenario in my mind where I feel it is appropriate this program continues this school year. Hazing should never and will never be tolerated. This message needs to be loud and clear to all athletes district wide," said Jennifer Jenkins, Brevard Public Schools Board member, District 3.

Board member Matt Susin told FOX 35 that the alleged incidents are unacceptable and those involved should be severely punished, but he was against suspending the football program for the entire year.

"Absolutely horrible," Susin said of the allegations.

"You have to hold those kids accountable to the nth degree, and this is pretty serious. Then peel back and do what’s right for those kids," he said.

The Florida High School Athletic Association said in a statement to FOX 35 News that once the school district completes its internal investigation, it will determine whether anything found in their report violates any FHSAA policies. 

Parents: Punish those involved, but not everyone else

A couple of parents told FOX 35 on Monday that their kids are in marching band, which gets seriously impacted by suspending football.

"They’re being tried and convicted in the court of public opinion which isn’t fair, and the kids – the fallout to all of the kids is absolutely ridiculous," said Gerry Tieri, who has two kids in the high school marching band.

He said the marching band has been preparing for the season all summer and suddently it's been "ripped away from them."

Michelle Terri told FOX 35 that she believes the complete suspension of the program is "an overreaction."

"What kind of season does a marching band have without a field to march on and a team to support?" she asked.

Sheriff Wayne Ivey statement:

As many of our citizens became aware this past weekend, through social media and other mediums, there was an incident that occurred last week at Viera High School involving numerous members of the Viera High Football Team.

The majority of the incident was video recorded by one of the team members and was later posted to social media causing significant concern throughout our community at various levels.
 

As such, I wanted to provide everyone with an update on the incident and the actions the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office are taking to fully investigate this incident in partnership, with Brevard Public Schools and the administration at Viera High School.

The incident was initially reported to our agency as a "Hazing Incident" that involved several members of the football team who were engaged in hazing an underclassman and fellow football player. 

While the incident was reported to possibly have occurred on the 14th, the school administration did not learn of the incident until late in the evening on Wednesday the 16th. 

As such, the following morning, Thursday the 17th, the administration took immediate action to ensure the safety of the students who were targeted, address those responsible for the incident, and review any failure of staff or policy, that could have prevented the incident from happening.
 

After doing a brief assessment of the facts of the incident, and determining that the actions of the students exceeded school policy, the administration immediately contacted their assigned School Resource Deputy, as well as District School Security, to report the incident to law enforcement.
 

Currently our agency is conducting a complete and thorough criminal investigation into the incident by interviewing all parties involved and collecting evidence and statements from those with immediate knowledge of what occurred!!  Once all of the facts have been collected and the case is finalized, it will be forwarded to the Brevard County State Attorney’s Office for review and a filing decision regarding any criminal actions that occurred!!
 

While there are without question varied opinions on the incident and how it should be addressed, that decision is best made once all of the facts are known and the incident can be reviewed by our State Attorney for further action!!

Superintendent Dr. Mark Rendell

Hazing, bullying, and intimidation have no place in Brevard Public Schools. We have spent the past several days investigating the hazing incident involving members of the Viera High football team.

Today, we have made the decision to suspend all Viera High football team activities (varsity and junior varsity) until further notice and we have relieved the varsity head coach of his duties until further notice. In an effort to educate the team to the seriousness of this incident, all Viera High football players will he required to take part in an anti-hazing educational program before there is a possibility that the football program could be reinstated.

We will also host a parent-player team meeting to begin the process of improving team culture and raising expectations. Per BPS procedure, the players suspended for their actions will not be permitted to attend the meeting.

I am confident a decision on the future of this year’s football season and the suspended players will be made soon.

With that said, it is important to remember that this investigation is not over; district security, law enforcement, and the school district are still collecting information. Again, hazing has no place in Brevard Public Schools, and we must always act in the best interest and safety of our students.