Three white former football players in southern Idaho have been charged with the brutal assault of a Black teammate.
Former players of Dietrich High School, John R.K. Howard, 18, and Tanner Ward, 17, now face charges from the state attorney general’s office with felony forcible penetration by use of a foreign object—a charge that could lead to a maximum of life in prison. The third culprit, a 16-year-old, faces similar charges in juvenile court where the charges and disposition of the case are not made publicly available.
According to a criminal complaint, it was on October 23, 2015 that the victim, who is not identified, was restrained by one player under the pretense that he was going in for a hug while Ward thrust a coat hanger into his rectum. Howard proceeded to kick the hanger several times.
Earlier this month the victim’s family filed a lawsuit of $10 million dollars against Dietrich High School, stating that this attack was only the latest in a string of constant racial abuse against the victim.
The suit names 11 school employees as defendants, including administrators and coaches who allegedly did nothing to stop the racial and physical abuse against the victim, an 18-year old with “mental disorders including learning disabilities.”
Detailing John Howard’s prominence in the community, the suit explains that school officials “ignored or were deliberately indifferent to the behavior of Mr. Howard, which included aggression, taunting, and bullying of the plaintiff and other students in the district.”
Two of the students have since been expelled from the school while Howard has returned to the state of Texas to finish high school, according to the Washington Post.
While Howard is scheduled to appear in court again on June 10, hearing dates for the other teens involved have not yet been announced.