1984-2001 оны хооронд Мичиганы их сургуулийн хоккейн багт тоглож байсан 16 тамирчин багийн доторх “бэлгийн шинж чанартай хүчирхийлэл” болон дэглэлтийн эсрэг холбооны шүүхэд нэхэмжлэл гаргажээ.
Нэхэмжлэгчдийн мэдээлснээр, багийн ахмад тоглогчид шинээр ирсэн тоглогчдыг бэлэг эрхтнээ хусах, төмсгийг нь хоккейн дуулга эсвэл шайбаар жинлэгдсэн хувин руу уяж тарчлаах зэрэг ноцтой үйлдлүүдийг удаа дараа хийдэг байсан аж. Эдгээр үйлдлийг тус багийн домогт дасгалжуулагч Ред Беренсоны удирдлага дор явагдсан “хүчирхийлэлд суурилсан дасгалжуулалтын арга барил”-ын нэг хэсэг гэж нэхэмжлэлд дурджээ. Беренсон 1984-2017 оны хооронд багийг удирдахдаа эдгээр үйлдлийг мэддэг, чиглүүлдэг байсан бөгөөд гомдол гаргасан тоглогчдод “Мичиганы эр хүн шиг бай” хэмээн дарамталж, асуудлыг нуун дарагдуулдаг байсан гэж буруутгагдаж байна.
Хохирогчдын хувьд дэглэлтийн улмаас сэтгэл гутрал, нойргүйдэл, бэлгийн сулрал, гэмтлийн дараах стресс (PTSD) болон мансууруулах бодисын хамаарал зэрэг олон төрлийн эрүүл мэндийн хүндрэлтэй тулгарсан байна. Мөн тус багийн дасгалжуулагчаар ажиллаж байсан Мел Пирсон ч уг нөхцөл байдлыг мэддэг байсан гэж үзжээ.
Мичиганы их сургуулийн төлөөлөгч Пол Корлисс мэдэгдэлдээ, эдгээр асуудал нь 25-аас дээш жилийн өмнө болсон, их сургуулийн бодлогыг зөрчсөн үйлдэл хэмээн тайлбарлав. Тус их сургууль нь өмнө нь эмнэлгийн ажилтан Роберт Андерсоны үйлдсэн хүчирхийллийн хэрэгт 490 сая долларын нөхөн төлбөр олгохоор тохиролцсон бөгөөд одоо спортын салбарын ажилтнуудын ёс зүйн зөрчилтэй холбоотой хэд хэдэн шүүх хурал, мөрдөн шалгах ажиллагаатай нүүр тулж байна.
Дэлгэрэнгүйг эх сурвалжаас харах
↓Эх сурвалжийг нээх ↓
A lawsuit filed on behalf of 16 men’s hockey players who competed at the University of Michigan between 1984 and 2001 alleges the players were subjected to hazing rituals that amounted to a form of “sexualized abuse” that would be “immediately recognized as torture under any other circumstance.”
The lawsuit includes graphic descriptions of hazing, including “forced shaving of genitals” and “tying men’s testicles to hockey helmets or buckets weighted with hockey pucks.” Players reported being penetrated with the handles of disposable razors and having their pubic hair burned with blowtorches.
The complaint, filed Wednesday in federal court in the Eastern District of Michigan, alleges the hazing rituals were part of legendary coach Red Berenson’s “abusive coaching style.” Berenson led Michigan to two national championships and 11 Frozen Four appearances in his 33 seasons as head coach, from 1984 to 2017.
The complaint alleges the hazing rituals were carried out by older players but were “known to, directed and facilitated for years” by Berenson. Berenson told the Ann Arbor News in 2012 he was putting an end to freshman hazing and acknowledged some of Michigan’s captains “got too carried away.” The complaint alleges that Michigan’s coaching staff knew the full extent of the hazing and “concealed the nature of the abuse” by telling players who complained to “be a Michigan man.”
“The allegations outlined in the plaintiffs’ complaint are disturbing, but many elements of the complaint are misleading,” Michigan spokesman Paul Corliss said in a statement. “The former student athletes, who attended the university more than 25 years ago, describe behavior at the hands of fellow teammates that allegedly happened in the 1980s and 1990s. To the extent that any former student-athlete engaged in hazing or other misconduct, they were violating university policy.”
The former players, identified in the complaint as John Does, experienced numerous issues as a result of the hazing, the complaint alleges, including substance abuse, insomnia, sexual dysfunction, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. The former players are seeking “punitive and liquidated damages in the amount they are entitled to.”
The complaint alleges that Mel Pearson, Berenson’s assistant and Michigan’s head coach from 2017 to 2022, knew about the hazing. Pearson’s contract was not renewed after it expired in 2022 following a third-party investigation that uncovered concerns with the culture of the program.
Berenson and Pearson could not be immediately reached for comment.
This lawsuit comes on the heels of a broader investigation that found Michigan’s athletic department failed to act quickly to address allegations of employee misconduct. Michigan fired former football coach Sherrone Moore for engaging in a relationship with his executive assistant and reached a $1.2 million settlement with a woman who accused a former football staffer of sexual assault.
Former offensive coordinator Matt Weiss is awaiting trial on charges that he hacked personal accounts and accessed intimate photos belonging to thousands of female athletes around the country. Michigan faces a class-action lawsuit related to those allegations.
Athletic director Warde Manuel agreed to a buyout in July and will leave his post at the end of the year.
In 2022, Michigan reached a $490 million settlement with more than 1,000 survivors of Robert Anderson, a former team doctor who abused hundreds of athletes while working at the university from 1966 to 2003.
