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Dayton Daily News (Ohio)
No criminal charges are expected to be filed in connection with an investigation that involved the Shawnee High School baseball team.
Clark County Prosecutor Andy Wilson and Clark County deputies began investigating after the team took a spring break trip to Tennessee in March.
"The investigation that has been provided to our office doesn't indicate that any criminal acts occurred," Wilson said.
The Clark County Sheriff's Office was called to the school in early April. The sheriff's department has declined to comment on the details of the investigation but a police report says the allegations involved harassment.
Deputies worked hand-in-hand with the school district to investigate the allegations thoroughly, Clark County Sheriff's Office Chief Deputy Travis Russell said.
"We took the investigation to the fullest extent possible and we did not find any criminal activity," he said.
The school district also opened an internal investigation into the trip when allegations were made. It decided to bar a volunteer coach and three players from participating for the remainder of the season. Clark-Shawnee Local Superintendent Gregg Morris issued a statement Wednesday morning.
"Clark-Shawnee is committed to the safety of our students and we continue to work diligently to ensure that all of our programs provide safe and welcoming environments for all students," he said in the statement.
He has declined previously to disclose details of the allegations or the students who were disciplined due to federal student privacy laws.
Morris said the internal investigation began when allegations were reported to school administration during the team's trip.
"During the spring break baseball trip to Tennessee our coach received reports of incidents that certainly don't support our values for our students," Morris said.
The internal investigation was conducted by district Assistant Superintendent Brian Kuhn. The district interviewed all players and their parents as part of the investigation. And though both the sheriff 's office and school worked together, their investigations were separate.
A parent who asked not to be identified has told the Springfield News-Sun that her son was on the baseball trip and described the allegations as an assault. Her son is one of the victims, she said. The mother said she believes the alleged assaults were a type of initiation and her son and other students weren't given a choice about participating.
During the internal investigation, the Shawnee varsity and junior varsity teams missed a combined 10 games. Morris said at the time he made the decision to cancel the games for student safety.
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