A teenage boy filed a lawsuit against his former Ohio school district and football coaches after he was allegedly forced to eat pizza against his religion.
The 17-year-old, known as K.W. or Junior, filed the lawsuit on Dec. 29, 2020, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern Division of the Northern District of Ohio, accusing his coaches at Canton McKinley High School of making him eat a pepperoni pizza that went against his Hebrew-Israelite religion.
Junior and his parents are seeking more than $12 million in monetary compensation and punitive damages from the school district and coaches.
ISRAELI MOM OF MISSING TEEN PLEADS FOR UN TO HELP
“On Monday, May 24th, 2021, Junior appeared for the mandatory weight class and was suddenly approached by coach Wattley and other Defendants’ Employees and was told that he would be disciplined for missing the weight program on May 20th,” the lawsuit said.
Junior was allegedly ordered by his coaches to sit in a chair that had been placed in the “middle of the gymnasium floor” while his teammates from the football team walked around the perimeter carrying “40-pound weights,” the lawsuit said.
Junior was given a “large pork pepperoni pizza” by his coach and ordered to “eat the entire pizza as punishment” for failing to appear for the weight program on May 20.
Prior to this incident, Junior had “made it known” that he was unable to “eat pork” and even filed paperwork with the school district and school board which noted that he could not eat pork, as his Hebrew-Israelite faith “prohibits the consumption of pork or pork residue,” the lawsuit says.
Junior reminded his coaches that he does not partake in the eating of pork, and security camera footage showed him kicking the pizza box and refusing to touch the pepperoni, the lawsuit said.
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After being told by his coaches that Junior’s position on the football might be “in jeopardy” and being allowed to pick off the pork pepperoni slices, Junior was subject to “threats from his teammates” if he didn’t finish the pizza fast enough.
The Washington Examiner reached out to the school for comment on the lawsuit.
Head coach Marcus Wattley and six assistant coaches from the football team were fired in June following a unanimous school board vote.
“This means that these individuals are no longer coaches with the Canton City School District, and they will not be involved in any Canton City Schools Football activity moving forward,” Superintendent Jeff Talbert said at the time. “The investigation found that the identified coaches engaged in actions that constituted inappropriate, demeaning, and divisive behavior in a misguided attempt to instill discipline in the student-athletes. This behavior will not be tolerated.”
“The Canton City School District holds our coaching and general staff to the highest professional and ethical standards,” he added. “Anything short of these standards is unacceptable and will not be permitted.”
Junior has since moved to a different school and football program, the Guardian reported Tuesday.
