Three white high school football players took team hazing to a whole new level at Dietrich High School in Idaho. The incident occurred, October 23, 2015, when one of the three teammates held his arms out to seemingly embrace his fellow teammate. However, it turned into restraint while another allegedly shoved a coat hanger into the boy’s rectum. The hanger was then kicked several times by the third teammate.
Sexual assault charges were filed against all three attackers; two are being charged as adults and could face life in prison under Idaho law, according to The Washington Post. The charges include forcible penetration by use of force or a foreign object.
Things took a turn for the worst for the small town of Dietrich, when the victim’s family filed a $10 million lawsuit against the high school. According to the lawsuit, the alleged rape was the culmination of months of racist abuse by white students against the boy, who is black and vulnerable due to “mental disorders including learning disabilities,” reports The Post.
The lawsuit claims the victim was called names such as “Kool-Aid,” “chicken eater,” “watermelon,” as well as the n-word. The suit also states the victim was forced to recite a racist song titled, “Notorious KKK,” set to the tune of Notorious B.I.G.’s “Can’t You See,” as the assailant displayed a Confederate flag. In addition to Dietrich High School, the suit also names several employees as defendants, claiming they did nothing to stop the racial and physical abuse towards the victim.
Dietrich High School has yet to comment on the suit. John Howard, pictured above, is one of three students.
