Teens arrested in connection with Hamilton High School hazing incident released
CHANDLER, Ariz. (KSAZ) - FOX 10 Phoenix has learned that two teenage boys arrested in connection with the Hamilton High School hazing incident were released from a Juvenile Detention Center this week.
The teens are accused of assaulting four football players, and a third person in the case, 17-year-old Nathaniel Thomas, is also out of jail. Thomas is being charged as an adult.
Meanwhile, the Chandler Unified School Board has yet to decide whether the school's head football coach, Steve Belles, will be able to keep his job. Belles has been "reassigned to home" for an indefinite period if time by officials, but officials said at the time the reassignment was "not disciplinary".
At a School Board meeting Wednesday night, however, at least one member of the community voiced her displeasure about the way the school district is handling the investigation.
"There is something wrong with this picture, when we have minors on trial for alleged felonious acts, when in fact, the ones who need to be on trial are the school officials and the coaches, who were either aware of, allowed, encouraged, or turned a blind eye to the regular practice and ritual of hazing within the football program," said activist Janelle Wood.
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Requests have reportedly been made to charge the two teens as adults. A judge will decide whether that will happen next month.