Overview

• All 11 Westhill High School students involved in the April 24 hazing incident turned themselves in within the district attorney's 48-hour deadline, avoiding felony kidnapping charges.
• Prosecutors allege the students staged a mock kidnapping involving weapons, blindfolds, and confinement in a car trunk, leaving one victim believing he would be abandoned in the woods.
• Most suspects, being minors, will face charges of misdemeanor unlawful imprisonment in family court, while at least one adult participant will be arraigned in adult court.
• The Westhill Central School District canceled the remainder of the boys’ varsity lacrosse season and launched an internal investigation to address program culture and hazing issues.
• Community concerns have focused on the emotional trauma inflicted on the victims and the adequacy of institutional safeguards against hazing in school sports programs.