The Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office has concluded that the Danvers School and Police Department mishandled reports of racist, homophobic, and violent hazing rituals that took place for years in the college hockey boys’ locker room.

With the release of a letter on Monday, the AG’s office agreed to resolve its civil rights investigation into Danvers Public Schools and the school district’s handling of the hazing scandal.

In November 2021, the AG’s office opened an investigation into hazing allegations involving incidents that allegedly took place in 2019 and 2020.

Previously, in an interview with 5 Investigates, a Danvers High School hockey player revealed that the men’s team held violent, degrading, racist and homophobic hazing rituals in his locker room. The player said the alleged assaults and other hazing rituals involved abuse of young players by members of the upper class.

The player said the rituals included “Gay Tuesday”, when the lights were turned off in the locker room and everyone had to take off their clothes, and “Hard-R Fridays” where players refused to say the n-word with a hard “R” were physically beaten, sometimes with a pink sex toy.

The AG’s office found that the misconduct occurred for several years before it was addressed by the Danvers School District and that it persisted because varsity coach Steve Baldassare, who is a sergeant of Danvers Police, had failed to properly supervise the team and dressing room.

The AG’s office said it was pleased that, in accordance with its recommendations, Baldassare was reassigned to duties that no longer include participation in the Danvers school resource officer program, which he oversaw.

There have been three separate investigations into the hazing allegations – by the police, the school district and an outside firm. The AG made it clear that the external investigator found misconduct by the hockey team that was “significantly more serious” than what was reported by the school district and police.

“Racism, homophobia and bigotry of any kind have no place in our locker rooms, ice rinks or playgrounds. We need to create a safe and supportive environment for our students to grow and learn” , Healey said. “With today’s resolution, Danvers Public School District is committed to making the changes necessary to improve the culture in its schools and athletic programs, protect student rights, and ensure that incidents of hatred and prejudice will never again be overlooked.”

Danvers Public Schools are released the terms of its resolution agreement with the attorney general’s office on Monday. As part of the agreement to resolve the matter without any factual or legal findings, the school district has agreed to take the following actions through the end of the 2023-24 school year.

• Danvers Public Schools will review its existing civil rights policies and procedures and make any necessary changes. The district will then submit its policies to the attorney general’s office for approval prior to implementation.
• The DPS will provide administrators, teachers, coaches and staff with sufficient training and support to enable them to effectively implement the policies approved by the GA office.
• DPS will provide all students with a curriculum to develop the skills, knowledge, and strategies necessary to prevent and respond to bullying, harassment, and biased misconduct, with additional training specifically for student-athletes.
• The DPS will notify the AG office of any incidents of bias involving Danvers High School students, confirm that the district is investigating, and send the AG office any updates it requests.

“We thank the AGO for acknowledging in its letter the important steps the DPS has already taken in response to these incidents. The actions recommended by the AGO align directly with the work we have been actively focusing on since these allegations have arisen”, Acting co-superintendents Keith Taverna and Mary Wermers said in a statement. “We understand the seriousness and complexity of these issues and are committed to doing better. We know that words must be followed by action.”

The resolution without factual or legal findings comes after Danvers Superintendent Dr. Lisa Dana, who went on sick leave in December 2021, decided to retire on August 31 while she remains on sick leave.

Baldassare was initially furloughed from his coaching role in January 2021 but was reinstated the following month. He eventually resigned as a boys’ ice hockey coach in July 2021, but continued to work as Danvers High School’s resource officer and supervisor of all school resource officers. public of Danvers.

He and the assistant hockey coaches have denied any knowledge of misconduct to investigators. Baldassare did not return an appeal from 5 Investigates regarding his report.

Danvers Police Chief James Lovell said last month that Baldassare’s new role with the Danvers Police Department had not been decided.