Lisbon, Maine, High School Football Suspended Indefinitely Amid Hazing Investigation

In an email sent on Monday, Lisbon School Department Superintendent Richard Green informed the staff and parents of Lisbon High School students that all football-related activities have been suspended as of October 4, until further notice

This comes amid a joint investigation by the Lisbon Police and the Lisbon School Department over hazing allegations involving minors.

Since it does involve minors, Lisbon police and Lisbon schools aren't at liberty to share recent findings about the hazing allegations.

In the email sent Monday to staff and parents that I received as a parent of a Lisbon High School student, Superintendent Green explained what he could talk about.

On Friday, October 4, 2024 the decision was made to suspend all Lisbon High School football related activities until further notice. This decision was based on new information that we learned through our own investigation and through the collaborative efforts with the Lisbon Police Department. As a result of the on-going investigation and the fact that the allegations involve minors, the Lisbon School Department is unable to legally share specific details related to our findings. Our inability to share detailed information has created a significant amount of confusion and frustration with our student athletes, parents, coaches and community members. Unfortunately this has also contributed to the increasing amount of misinformation being shared on social media and other outlets. As a result of the seriousness of this matter and the fact that we want to protect and provide support for our student athletes, coaches and staff, the decision has been made to hire an outside agency to conduct a full investigation into this matter. This will not only generate a final report and recommendations, but this review will also help to determine if this is an isolated incident or part of a known “culture”. Although this additional investigation will take more time, we feel that it is necessary to help support and preserve the integrity and reputations of our student athletes, coaches and administrators.

As a parent of a Lisbon High School student, I think the police and administrators are handling this situation like the professionals that they are.

Many will be upset as Lisbon's football season will be at the very least, cut short, and in my opinion, depending on the outcome of the investigation, it should be canceled outright. Canceling the season would send a strong message that hazing will not be tolerated in the Lisbon School system.

I know that's not a popular opinion with many parents, especially since we still don't have the details of the investigation, but we're all allowed to have our opinions.

Feel free to share yours in the comments.