WARREN, Mich. – Three teens could be charged with assault in connection to hazing in the De La Salle Collegiate High School football program.
Two 16-year-old boys are expected to be charged as juveniles, according to the Warren police commissioner.
An 18-year-old senior at the school, who was 17 years old at the time of the alleged crime, could face an assault charge as an adult. Their cases have been sent to Macomb County Prosecutor Eric Smith for review and a charging decision.
De La Salle forfeited its high school playoff game due to allegations of hazing in the team locker room. Warren police said earlier this week they were in the midst of interviewing every member of the football team.
“I’ve assigned five investigators to the case -- one sergeant, four detectives,” Warren Police Commissioner Bill Dwyer said at the time.
Police said they expected to conduct 40 to 80 interviews before the investigation concluded. Dwyer confirmed to Local 4 on Thursday that the investigation had been completed.
Warren police said they would present their findings to the Macomb County Prosecutor’s Office and recommend charges against three students. The three students in question have been suspended since the start of the investigation, Dwyer said.
The prosecutor must decide on what kind of charges the teens could face, if any.
Local 4 reached out to De La Salle High School for comment, but school officials said they don’t comment publicly about disciplinary matters.
Macomb County Prosecutor Eric Smith released the following statement Friday afternoon:
Today, my office received a warrant request from the Warren Police Department regarding an incident at De La Salle High School that took place on October 10, 2019. Many statements have been made in the media regarding young men that could be potential victims in this case. The warrant request provided to our office states that the only alleged victim to this particular incident:
“Does not wish to further charges and has declined to be interviewed by law enforcement.”
As previously disclosed to the Warren Police, one of our Senior Assistant Prosecutors is potentially a material witness in this matter, creating a conflict that precludes us from making the necessary charging decisions on this case. Therefore, to avoid any appearance of impropriety our office will request that another County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office review this matter as it relates to the actions of the individuals suspended by De La Salle officials.
Watch previous report:
Hazing ‘tradition’
Police said all three teens were involved in a football team hazing tradition. A team meal was held the night before a playoff game, then every player was expected to head to the locker room for hazing, Dwyer said.
The police commissioner said an investigation found that at least three students held one young player to the floor of the locker room.