SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — Several Vista High School football players involved in a misconduct incident have been suspended and removed from the football team.
"Sadness and disgust are precisely the reactions I had when I saw students treating one another in such a cruel manner," said VUSD Superintendent Dr. Matt Doyle.
Dr. Doyle addressed the incident in a video to parents and students Friday.
"The behavior, the mistreatment, the lack of compassion and respect for a fellow human being is intolerable," he said.
Community outrage boiled over into protests this week at Vista High School and the district's office as people demanded answers and action from school officials.
In the video, Doyle acknowledges a group of football players bullied a student in the locker room.
"It is very clear from the disturbing video that a student was physically and emotionally assaulted," he said.
Doyle did not go into detail about what took place but said the student was not sexually assaulted despite what was said in the video of the incident.
He also urges the community to not jump to conclusions and to stop harassing and threatening the football team.
"Please help us to keep the campus calm and safe for all staff and students," Dr. Doyle said.
Some parents are also expressing concerns about other students' safety.
In an email to ABC 10News, a Vista High parent said her son who's not on the football team but is a student-athlete is being affected by the incident.
She said, "many students and adults continue to harass, threaten, and spread gossip flaming emotions and putting the safety of other students at risk."
Read the full letter from the VUSD Superintendent by clicking here.
