The letter starts by saying the "media frenzy" about the story is "both concerning and saddening," and emphasizes that early investigation indicates "no one was involved in the conflict against their will."
LAT about alleged hazing at the number one high school football team in the nation:In a new letter to the Mater Dei community, Bishop Kevin Vann and other diocese leaders decry the "recent media frenzy about the conduct of players" as "concerning and saddening" -- then immediately apologize for any incidents that led to student injuries. pic.twitter.com/I23Hdc9rJH
— Laura J. Nelson 🦅 (@laura_nelson) December 8, 2021
One lawsuit described a locker-room hazing ritual that left a player with a traumatic brain injury; the other, a planned attack that broke a basketball player’s jaw....In video footage reviewed by The Times, the two students throw punches at each other as another player can be heard shouting the N-word off camera. The larger player lands two punches on the smaller player’s head, the footage shows. The smaller student covers his face with his hand before being punched in the side of the head a third time....The Santa Ana Police Department recommended that a felony assault charge be filed against the larger player