Thursday, May 16, 2013
Michael Divincenzo faces eight misdemeanor charges related to reports of physical assaults at Maine West High School in Des Plaines in 2012, according to Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez.
A former varsity boys soccer coach and teacher at Maine West High School faces multiple criminal charges related to reports of bullying and hazing, Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez stated on Wednesday. Michael Divincenzo was charged with eight misdemeanor counts including three counts of battery, one count of hazing and four counts of failure to report abuse as mandated, in incidents on June 1, 2012, Aug. 31, 2012 and Sept. 26, 2012, according to court documents. Divincenzo is accused of threatening freshmen students to have the varsity players stick their thumbs up their buttocks if they did not communicate properly during a soccer drill, according to the charges. Freshmen team players were held down by varsity players against …
Wednesday, May 15, 2013
A former Maine West High School soccer coach, Michael Divincenzo, faces multiple misdemeanor charges related to reports of hazing at the Des Plaines high school, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.
Michael Divincenzo, the former varsity boys soccer coach named in a bullying and hazing lawsuit filed by current and former students and their families, was charged on May 15 with multiple misdemeanor charges related to the reports of hazing incidents, the Chicago Sun-Times reported. The criminal charges are separate from the civil lawsuit, which was filed by four current and former students. Antonio Romanucci, an attorney representing the students and their families, released the following statement in response to the criminal charges filed against Divincenzo: "The fact that Coach Divincenzo has been criminally charged brings no joy to the families whose children were brutally sexually abused while educators stood idly by allowing it to…
Friday, May 10, 2013
Dates and times for commencement ceremonies for Maine West High School, Maine East High School and Maine South High School students.
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Friday, May 10
The following information was submitted by Ginny Edwards, assistant to superintendent for Maine Township High School District 207. Maine West High School Commencement Ceremony 2013 Maine East High School Commencement Ceremony 2013 Maine South High School Commencement Ceremony 2013
The attorney representing Maine West High School students in a hazing lawsuit stated a report from Maine Township High School District 207 does not address key issues.
The lawyer representing four current and former Maine West High School students and their families in a bullying and hazing lawsuit stated there were significant omissions in a report on hazing incidents in the school district. Maine Township High School District 207 hired an attorney to complete an independent investigation into hazing incidents and policies within the district, and report back to the board of education. That process concluded and D-207 released a copy of a report on the investigation and a statement about it this week. The report stated D-207 and Maine West staff responded properly and appropriately to reports of hazing in September 2012. Antonio Romanucci, the attorney representing the four students in the bullying and …
An independent investigator hired by Maine Township High School District 207 to review hazing incidents and policies within the district reported his findings to the board of education.
An independent investigator hired by Maine Township High School District 207 to review hazing incidents and policies within the district reported that district officials responded appropriately. Sergio Acosta, an attorney at Hinshaw & Culbertson, stated that D-207 and staff at Maine West High School in Des Plaines responded properly and promptly when reports of hazing were made in September 2012, according to a statement from D-207. "The Board is pleased to learn that administrative employees at both the building and District office levels responded appropriately to the hazing allegations," D-207 stated. "The Board isalso pleased to receive Mr. Acosta’s recommendations which will be carefully considered for implementation as part of the …
Friday, May 3, 2013
A civil engineering student from Des Plaines is competing with her classmates in a concrete canoe competition.
Chances for success in a concrete canoe competition increase when your team includes someone who grew up along the Des Plaines River, or so it may seem following a recent win for a college in Indiana. Shannon Osiecki, 20, an alum of Maine West High School, with her approximately 25 teammates at the University of Evansville in southern Indiana, are ready to compete in a national concrete canoe meet at the University of Illinois in Champaign in June. Her crew received top honors in a regional competition between about 15 teams in April, Osiecki said, and more than 20 teams of college students will paddle for the top prize at the national competition. The concrete canoe competition has a long history, and this is the 13th year Evansville is …
Saturday, April 6, 2013
A roundup of the most-read stories from March 31 to April 6.
Woman Screams After Waking to Intruder in Cowboy Hat published April 1. Grazie! Banquets Building up for Auction published April 3. Des Plaines Panera Gets Makeover published April 2. Cops Arrest Man Accused of Maine Township Burglaries published April 2. D-207 Cuts Deal with Maine West Coach Fired in Hazing Case published April 2. Find Patch on Facebook and click the like button.
Wednesday, April 3, 2013
Law enforcement, experts on hazing and victims of abuse speak at the Des Plaines Park District Leisure Center on May 22, Journal and Topics Newspapers reported.
Plans for a public forum about bullying and hazing are underway. The forum, which will include law enforcement officials, experts on bullying and hazing and victims of abuse, was organized in the wake of reports and investigations into incidents of sexual assault and abuse at Maine West High School in Des Plaines, Journal and Topics Newspapers reported. The hazing forum will be held at the Des Plaines Park District Leisure Center, 2222 Birch St. on May 22, Journal and Topics Newspapers reported. The local news outlet is sponsoring the event. Maine Township High School District 207 and Maine West have been entangled in a hazing scandal that came to light last fall, when students on the varsity soccer team reported incidents of abuse. Since …
Maine Township High School District 207 stated a statement made by a lawyer representing current and former Maine West High School students in a hazing lawsuit was “inaccurate and self-serving.”
Maine Township High School District 207 criticized a statement made by a lawyer in a hazing lawsuit regarding its agreement with a former employee. Michael Divincenzo, a former Maine West High School teacher and soccer coach fired over hazing allegations, dropped his appeal of the termination and agreed to cooperate with Maine Township High School District 207 in its defense of a lawsuit, D-207 stated on Monday. Antonio Romanucci the lawyer representing current and former Maine West High School students in a hazing lawsuit filed against district employees including Divincenzo, another former teacher and soccer coach and the principal at Maine West. “What once was an adversarial proceeding between Maine West and Coach Divo has now evolved …
Tuesday, April 2, 2013
Michael Divincenzo, a former Maine West High School varsity boys’ soccer coach, denied any wrongdoing in a statement regarding his dismissal of an appeal to his termination from Maine Township High School District 207.
A former Maine West High School soccer coach fired over hazing allegations has dropped his appeal of the termination and agreed to cooperate with Maine Township High School District 207 in its defense of a lawsuit. Michael Divincenzo said his decision to drop the challenge to his firing should not be construed as an admission of guilt. “I know that I have done nothing wrong and intend to vigorously contest the allegations in the pending civil case,” Divincenzo stated. “This has been a difficult decision that was made in the best interests of my family.” Current and former students sued District 207 and school officials alleging that bullying and hazing was allowed to go on for years. One of the four Maine West students suing school …
Sam
1:21 pm on Thursday, May 16, 2013
In the May 16th Suntimes, the charges were dropped against the students who were involved because their peers (victims) didn't want to press charges. So are these kids saying it wasn't as bad as they claimed? If that's the case what is the coach being charged for? Did the coach force his team to hold down other students on the team and sodomize them? They interviewed 100 people regarding the … more ›