Boyd ISD superintendent denies culture of hazing claims after felony charges against 4 students

BOYD, Texas - Boyd ISD's superintendent denied claims that the district has a culture of hazing following the arrests of four Boyd High School students for an alleged hazing incident. 

Boyd High School hazing arrests

What we know:

Four Boyd High School students were arrested on September 16 and charged with injury to a child causing bodily injury, a felony, and unlawful restraint.

17-year-old Chason Lee-Earl Tucker and 17-year-old Noah Stevens are being charged as adults. Two juveniles have also been charged, but their identities have not been revealed.

According to arrest warrant affidavits for Stevens and Tucker, the victim in the case is a 14-year-old student who was physically restrained by the upperclassmen in the boys' locker room. 

The older boys dragged the victim into the shower and removed his clothes. They allegedly tried to remove his underwear but were unsuccessful, so Tucker pulled down his own pants and sat on the victim with his bare bottom.

A coach heard the commotion and told the boys to "settle down," but then left the locker room and later said the incident "needed to be handled in the locker room and didn't need to be reported further up," according to court documents.

The victim suffered multiple bruises from being dragged and injured his hand while trying to get away from the older boys, according to the court document.

What they're saying:

Attorneys for Stevens released a statement saying the situation "could have been addressed by the coaching staff."

"But here we are," the statement said. "This kind of behavior has been going on for years at this high school. Our client experienced similar locker room hijinks when he began playing football there. Context and culture matter."

At a Boyd ISD school board meeting on Monday, Boyd ISD's superintendent said the district does not have a culture of hazing, as some have asserted following the arrests.

"I’ve been here, I believe this is my third year. We’ve not had any complaints or incidents on hazing," Boyd ISD Superintendent Tom Woody said.

Woody says he's not jumping to conclusions as the police investigation continues, and that the district's investigation contradicts claims that coaches tried to keep the incident in-house.

"There's one version that's been reported, and we need to refrain before we judge people."

The other side:

Some have described the incident as "football boys being boys" in a locker room, but police said it was clearly an assault.

"He was taken into the shower area, stripped of his clothes," Boyd Police Officer Ray Cannon said. "The player’s private parts were making contact with his skin."

The boy’s parents contacted the Boyd High School principal. The boy was reportedly taken against his will into the field house shower and was "actively attempting to fight his way away from the students."

What's next:

Boyd Police say they are still interviewing witnesses involved in the incident, and that more charges could be coming as the investigation into the alleged hazing incident continues.