The news vultures are circling around the prestigious Bronx High School of Science in Bedford Park as the arrest on hazing charges of three of the school’s track team members continues to make headlines. (For background, check out our Bronx Crime Report.)
In response to the charges — which claim that the three track team members repeatedly hazed another member with sexually-inappropriate touching over the course of three months, all inside the school — Bronx Science Principal Valerie Reidy suspended all track activities. All of the accused are being charged as adults and all pleaded not guilty last week.
Jan Berkmans, a parent for one of the accused members, Piers Berkmans, who is considered one of the top distance runners in the city, told the NY Times that his son was innocent.
“My kid grew up in a really moral atmosphere and loving family,” Berkmans, a pastor, told the Times. “We are sure, we are positive he will be found innocent.”
News outlets throughout the region have picked up the story, as have some international outlets, like the British tabloid Daily Mail.
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Welcome to the Norwood News, a bi-weekly community newspaper that primarily serves the northwest Bronx communities of Norwood, Bedford Park, Fordham and University Heights. Through our Breaking Bronx blog, we focus on news and information for those neighborhoods, but aim to cover as much Bronx-related news as possible. Founded in 1988 by Mosholu Preservation Corporation, a not-for-profit affiliate of Montefiore Medical Center, the Norwood News began as a monthly and grew to a bi-weekly in 1994. In September 2003 the paper expanded to cover University Heights and now covers all the neighborhoods of Community District 7. The Norwood News exists to foster communication among citizens and organizations and to be a tool for neighborhood development efforts. The Norwood News runs the Bronx Youth Journalism Heard, a journalism training program for Bronx high school students. As you navigate this website, please let us know if you discover any glitches or if you have any suggestions. We’d love to hear from you. You can send e-mails to norwoodnews@norwoodnews.org or call us anytime (718) 324-4998.
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