Civil rights attorneys representing football players who were pepper sprayed at a football game against Washington High School in Massillon in early October are demanding accountability.
During a press conference Monday, attorney Ben Crump and parents of Cardinal Ritter College Prep players in St. Louis stood before cameras demanding Massillon Police apologize and take responsibility for shooting pepper spray at players after an incident at the end of the game on Oct. 3.
Crump wants to know why Cardinal Ritter, a majority Black team, was targeted.
"There's no way to try to justify the use of chemical agents on 14, 15, 16-year-old children," Crump said.
Crump says he hopes Massillon Police will do the right thing.
"Hopefully, they will admit that there were excessive force employed, that they did not need to do this," he said.
Fellow attorney Robert Grisham said he wanted to know why there was a heavy police presence at the game in the first place.
"That heavy police presence during the game makes us wonder if this is something that was predetermined," Grisham said.
Massillon Police say they were contracted by Massillon Schools to provide security for the game "to ensure safety for all those who enter the stadium which includes fans, students and athletes alike."
In a statement shared on Facebook following the incident, Massillon Police said multiple physical altercations occurred at the end of the game and two officers deployed pepper spray. They said they reviewed the incident and found it to be within their policies.
Andre Main's son is a senior on the Ritter football team. He said he was watching the game online from St. Louis when he noticed something seemed off.
"Seeing my son there unable to protect himself and me not being able to protect him, him and all his teammates need to understand this is not right," Main said.
Ashley Ashburn's 16-year-old son is also on the Ritter football team. She said she's speaking up for her son and his teammates.
"To let them know that this is not OK, this is not normal and what happened to them should have never happened," Ashburn said.
In the days following the incident, Cardinal Ritter President Tamiko Armistead released a statement on Facebook to the school's community noting that the parents of the players were understandably upset "as we all should be."
Armistead said he has reached out to the athletic director, Washington High School and the Massillon City School District for support in pushing for an investigation into the officers' actions.
"There does not appear to be a desire or willingness to help with this effort," he wrote.
Massillon Police have not responded to a request for comment about Monday's news conference.
