WARREN, Mich. (WXYZ) — Quennitta Pearson is a proud mother; her son Ricky is in the National Honor Society, has a 3.6 GPA and has big plans for his future. He'll be attending Albion next year on an academic scholarship.
She always figured she may give an interview about him one day, but said she thought that would be due to his accomplishments in sports or in school.
Instead, she and her husband faced what they called a nightmare on Monday, when their 18-year-old son was arraigned alongside four other Warren De La Salle students on charges of misdemeanor assault and battery in a hazing scandal at the school, which allegedly occurred in the fall.
“As a parent, that’s like your worst nightmare. To know your son is in the 12th grade and right now you want to be dealing with prom and graduation. Now we’re in a situation where we’re going to court," said Ricky Pearson, Sr.
VIDEO: Parents of two Warren De La Salle students charged in a hazing scandal are speaking out tonight. MORE tonight on @wxyzdetroit @tv20detroit pic.twitter.com/eO36ToE5W0
— Jenn Schanz (@JennSchanzWXYZ) February 29, 2020
Michael Young, headed to Eastern Illinois on an athletic scholarship next year, was also arraigned Monday.
"He went from you Googled his name you’ll see De La Salle championship back-to-back. Now you Google his name and all you’re going to see is the hazing," said LaToya Young.
The hazing allegations are something both sets of parents deny their sons were ever involved in.
"They wrestle, they bond. This was blown out of proportion," Young told Action News.
Warren Police investigated alleged football locker room hazing earlier this year. A broomstick was reportedly used but there were no claims of penetration.
The St. Clair County Prosecutor, after initially declining to press charges, charged seven students, after sources told Acton News a new parent came forward.
“I really truly believe that these seven young men are being used as pawns," Quennitta said.
The Pearsons and the Youngs, along with their attorney Paul Addis, claim their sons were thrown under the bus by the school for political reasons; they claim to get rid of a football coach.
The Pearsons also believe race played a factor, noting that of the more than a dozen student athletes first implicated in this scandal, the only students suspended from school, their son included, were African American. Warren De La Salle is a predominately white school and has a predominately white football team.
Addis said an initial internal investigation by the school seemed to just stop in its tracks.
“For whatever reason there were never any findings," he said.
Action News obtained internal notes from that investigation — they show, among other things, the alleged victims either didn’t consider themselves victims, or refused to talk to investigators. The original whistle-blower, according to a note from the school's initial investigation, was not even known to the investigator.
It’s information Addis said all parties involved, should have.
“This information is just the tip of the iceberg of why we have been asking for this information and we have just been told no," he told Action News.
“We participated in this report and we had no feedback from it," said Ricky Pearson, Sr.
Action News reached out to the President of Warren De La Salle for a comment on this latest story, we are waiting on his response.
All four defendants charged Monday, including Young and Pearson, were released on a personal bond.
“Something like that you just want to put in the back of your mind and forget about it and move on with life," Michael Young, Sr. told Action News.
But the emotional impact of these allegations and the legal ramifications of this case, these parents said, has had a lasting impact on their sons.
"We're going to take on the criminal charges head on, and we're going to have a jury decide and show the world that they didn't have anything to do with it," Addis said.
He said legal action against the school is a possibility.
