Michigan hockey lawsuit alleges decades of sexually abusive hazing
USA Today • • sports
Key Points:
- Sixteen former University of Michigan hockey players filed a federal lawsuit alleging decades of ritualized sexual abuse and hazing, including forced stripping, shaving, and assault, occurring between 1984 and 2001.
- The lawsuit claims the coaching staff was aware of the abuse, requiring players to endure it, and punished those who complained by reducing their ice time or labeling them as poor teammates.
- The University of Michigan denied responsibility, calling the allegations misleading and emphasizing its longstanding anti-hazing policies and commitment to student safety.
- Former players report lasting trauma from the hazing, including mental health issues and substance abuse, and are seeking unspecified damages and mandatory sexualized hazing prevention training for athletes.
- The lawsuit references former coach Red Berenson’s practice of shaving players from neck down to conceal abuse, though Berenson publicly ended freshman hazing in 2012; prior investigations into the hockey program had identified cultural issues but did not specifically mention hazing.
