SPOKANE — The Mead School District allowed “a permissive culture of hazing” by failing to inform parents or otherwise report that a group of football players had assaulted their teammates, according to a complaint filed against the district.
The parents of a former Mead football player filed the complaint, which seeks damages and injunctive relief, on behalf of the sophomore last week in Spokane County Superior Court. Sweetser Law Office in Spokane is representing the plaintiffs.
The incidents at last year’s football camp have drawn public outcry and tort claims filed on behalf of students and their families.
The complaint alleges a few players were restrained by older teammates and assaulted with a massage gun the past two summers at Mead football camps.
“A pattern of assaultive rituals were performed by a group of Mead’s older male athletes dubbed the ‘sacrifice,’ “ the complaint alleges. “The sacrifice is a form of sexual harassment, intimidation and bullying against targeted members of Mead’s athletic teams.”
At last summer’s camp at Eastern Washington University, the sophomore was tackled to the ground, and four older teammates pinned him down, pulled his legs apart and held them toward his head as about 15 players yelled and cheered, the lawsuit says.
The complaint alleges a masked student stood with a massage gun and said the “price must be paid” as “punishment,” and assaulted the student with the gun.
Several players recorded the assault on their phones, and the videos were later “passed around like a trophy,” the lawsuit says. The videos circulated in the Mead community and beyond, including to Mead Athletic Director John Barrington and coach Keith Stamps.
The sophomore reported the assaults to Stamps.
The complaint alleges, that under Mead’s policies, the school district should have reported the information, including to parents and district administrators.
“Those duties were ignored,” the lawsuit says.
It says Stamps and Barrington did not issue any suspensions, did not report the incident to law enforcement and did not formally document anything in the school records system.
Stamps said he spoke with some players about the role of seniors, but there was no discussion about the assaults.
“Coach Stamps’ informal chats did nothing to stop hostile behavior from this group of older white players toward younger Black players,” the complaint says.
In March, Mead High School resource deputy Mitchell Othmer submitted gross misdemeanor fourth-degree assault charges related to last year’s assaults for five students to the Spokane County Prosecutor’s Office, according to an email from Othmer to EWU police Detective Robert Schmitter.
Spokane County Deputy Prosecutor Shane Smith said the prosecutor’s office did not charge the defendants with assault.
Instead, per state law, they were referred to a diversion program because they had no criminal history and the charge was a gross misdemeanor, Smith said. A diversion agreement is outside the criminal justice system and may require the defendants to perform community service, counseling and/or other similar options.
Over the following months, the suit alleges Black players were harassed with racial slurs and called “snitches.”
The sophomore said he felt unsafe at school and had nightmares and flashbacks about the assaults.
“He felt humiliated and embarrassed” when the videos resurfaced on social media, the complaint says. Mead offered no safety plan or other supportive measures to the student, it says.
Concerns about the videos were brought to the attention of Mead staff in late 2023 and early this year, according to the lawsuit. Mead notified the sophomore’s parents in February about the videos. A Mead counselor called the parents the next day offering support for the student.
The student has since transferred from the school.
The lawsuit claims the district did not treat the male victims in a manner comparable to the treatment it provides girls who are assaulted. The district minimized the seriousness of the conduct with statements like, “Boys will be boys,” the complaint says.
Mead Superintendent Travis Hanson wrote in a statement the district is aware of the lawsuit and tort claims filed in relation to incidents involving Mead High students. It anticipates additional court filings connected to the incidents.
“Our attorneys have asked that we allow the facts to come forward in the context of the litigation,” Hanson wrote. “We recognize that litigation can be an inherently difficult process for all participants. The district does not want to make the process more difficult for the involved students or their families by debating the matter publicly.”
