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
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 …
Monday, May 6, 2013
The Sun-Times reports District 207 has spent the money on an attorney at Hinshaw & Culbertson to investigate hazing allegations.
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Monday, May 6
Maine Township High School District 207 has paid more than $73,000 to a Chicago law firm to look into sexual abuse allegations regarding the Maine West High School hazing scandal, the Park Ridge Herald-Advocate reports. The district hired Sergio Acosta’s law firm, Hinshaw & Culbertson early in 2013. For one month of work, adding up to 352 hours among other expenses, the district was billed $73,787. More expenses could be forthcoming for work conducted after March 1, the newspaper reports. The firm was hired to look into allegations that multiple soccer players on the boys’ soccer team were sexually assaulted by teammates as an act of hazing. Several teachers and administrators have been charged with being the responsible adults in charge…
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 …
Michael Divincenzo is accused of knowing about the hazing incidents at the school.
The Maine West High School soccer coach accused of allowing hazing at the school is letting go of his fight to keep his job, the Chicago Tribune reports. Michael Dicincenzo has agreed to end his employment with the district in exchange for the district providing an attorney to represent him in court regarding the hazing allegations, the newspaper reports. One of the four Maine West High School students who is suing Maine Township High School District 207 administrators, faculty and staff over hazing and bullying allegations described his experiences, and said he believes his coach, Michael Divincenzo, knew about the assaults because he saw him wink at players, WGN reported. D-207 suspended Divincenzo without pay, pending the dismissal …
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 ›