Prosecutor says no charges in Lisbon High School hazing incident

LEWISTON — Androscoggin County District Attorney Neil McLean says his office will not file criminal charges against any members of the Lisbon High School football team following an investigation into hazing allegations.

Androscoggin County District Attorney Neil McLean.

“Much of what was disclosed was described by the young people involved as ‘horseplay’, ‘banter’ and all involved voluntary participation,” McLean said in a written statement on Tuesday.

The prosecutor’s statement is as follows: Contradicts conclusions of Portland law firm Drummond Woodsumappointed to conduct an independent investigation. A report published last month found there was a “culture of abuse and rude behavior” among members of the football team.

This included at least one incident of players whipping each other with leather belts until bruising occurred; at least one incident in which a freshman was thrown upside down into a trash can; and many instances where players are trapped behind a chain-link gate and poked with brooms by upper-class people.

“It is clear that the players wanted to appear universally unaffected. … Although they said they were willing participants, they did not want adults to be aware of these activities.” stated in the law firm’s report.

Police and school officials conducted two separate investigations, and it was unclear whether they focused on all of the same incidents or just separate off-campus incidents investigated by police. McLean did not respond to a voicemail requesting clarification.

Athletic Director Chris Spaulding at the Lisbon School Committee meeting Monday evening. He said his department has begun implementing some changes It aims to deter future incidents, including greater enforcement.

Reports of hazing came to the attention of the district attorney after Lisbon High School’s resource officer received a report that a student had pushed another student at school and police interviewed the students on Oct. 2. Multiple other students were mentioned, all linked to an off-campus incident on Aug. 24.

There is no Maine law addressing bullying, and although the term has been used publicly in recent months to describe incidents at school and off campus, the district attorney had to evaluate whether the reported behavior fell under other existing criminal laws. In a written statement, McLean clarified whether they had been violated.

Two days after a meeting with the school resource officer, Lisbon forfeited a football game against Mountain Valley High School in Rumford, and less than a week later school administrators removed seven players from the football team and suspended all football activities.

At the time, Lisbon Schools superintendent Richard Green said the decision to suspend the players stemmed from the school’s internal investigation into an alleged hazing incident on campus.

As the investigation into the beating allegations emerged, Lisbon declared all remaining scheduled football matches a forfeit.

During the Drummond Woodsum investigation, investigators found that “incidents of hazing occurred among the Lisbon High School football team this season and possibly in previous seasons.”

Lawyers Tom Trenholm and Kelsey Cromie, who wrote the report, interviewed 40 students between October 15 and 23. They requested a meeting with all players who have been on the squad since the beginning of the 2024 season.

Many of the players resisted providing specific details, and some appeared visibly nervous during the interview, attorneys said. They added that teachers overheard players telling teammates not to share details during interviews.

“Some players told us they were told ‘not to say anything’ about what was going on,” the report said. “Although they did not specify who told them this, our impression was that it came from other players.”

According to the report, players told investigators they did not report these incidents to any coaches or managers and tried to classify them as a typical “prank.”

That’s the same word McLean used in his statement Tuesday. He announced that after all interviews were completed and all evidence collected by the Lisbon Police Department was reviewed, there was insufficient evidence to support filing criminal charges against anyone involved.

McLean said because the case involved multiple teenagers, authorities were “restricted by law on what can be released or made public regarding the details of the investigation.”

McLean shared that his office feels it is “imperative” to listen to students and their families.

“We sat down with them multiple times to make sure they had every opportunity to explain what happened, who was involved and what the impact was,” he said.

Lisbon Police Chief Ryan McGee said his department is in “constant communication” with the district attorney’s office regarding this case. Although he himself declined to discuss specifics, McGee said he respected the decision not to file charges.

“We appreciate the treasurer’s office doing a thorough review. It’s important for everyone to have their voice heard,” McGee said.

on monday Lisbon School Committee meetingmembers discussed the Drummond Woodsum report published last month. Athletic director Spaulding told members his department had taken steps outlined in the report to prevent future harassment, including limiting access to locker rooms before practice.

“We always strengthen supervision in locker rooms, we lock trash cans… and we continue anti-harassment courses for all coaches,” Spaulding said, adding that his department also investigates such issues. courses for student-athletes.

Football coach Chris Kates said the locker room should only be open 15 minutes in the morning and 30 minutes before scheduled practices for players to drop off personal belongings.

Kates said doors should be kept closed until just before practice and supervision needs to be improved. He said it can be difficult for the team’s eight coaches to keep track of 50 student-athletes when school lets out around 3 p.m. and practices don’t start for another hour and a half.

He said three anti-hazing organizations reached out to Spaulding to offer help in determining next steps for prevention.

Neither committee Chair Margaret Galligan-Schmoll nor Vice Chair Kim Labbe-Poisson responded to a voicemail Tuesday to discuss the report’s findings or the district attorney’s decision.

Sun Journal Staff Writers Joe Charpentier and Haley Jones contributed to this story

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