Seven students were arrested at the Dec. 2 varsity hockey game at Thornton Park after Breathalyzer tests revealed they had consumed alcohol.
The students, two aged 18 and seven minors, were taken from the student section by Shaker Heights police and subjected to Breathalyzer tests. According to police reports, the two 18-year-old students were arrested at the scene, given court dates and turned over to their parents.
One student spent Friday night in the Shaker Heights Police Juvenile Bureau and was later claimed by a parent.
Another student confirmed that she was taken to the hospital in an ambulance for alcohol poisoning before the game began.
Although two minors admitted to consuming alcohol, the breath tests showed their blood alcohol level were not high enough for police to take further action. They were then turned over to their parents.
Police reports listed that a metal flask covered in black tape was confiscated as evidence.
After news of the situation began to circulate among the crowd, many students left. The student section was noticeably emptier and quieter by the second period.
Senior Noah Rosenblatt, who said he was the designated driver for his friends, was one of the students chosen for a breath test. According to Rosenblatt, he did not drink that night, and the breath test did not indicate he had. He said Assistant Principal Sarah Joyce called his mother because he had been tested.
“Why call someone’s parents when they’re not doing anything wrong?” Rosenblatt said.
In a Guest ’Rite published in Nov. 21 edition of The Shakerite, math teacher Walter Slovikovski wrote, “I have recently spoken to a few friends who refused to attend Shaker hockey games because the environment . . . is far from family friendly.” He wrote that these friends “love hockey, but will never buy a ticket to a game.”
Principal Michael Griffith said he was “highly disappointed and embarrassed” about the events Dec. 2. He said the police effort at the hockey game was independent of the school because Thornton Park is a city facility. He doesn’t intend to employ Breathalyzer tests at school events unless “we get to the point where there’s no alternative.”
Reactions to the hockey game appeared on Facebook and Twitter. Some wished luck to those students taken into police custody. Others showed disappointment in the way their peers behaved and commented that these students gave Shaker a bad reputation.
Responses of the hockey players themselves varied as well; some enjoyed having a rowdy crowd, while others didn’t appreciate drunken students attending the game. “As long as the fans aren’t causing a scene, it’s fine, but from what I heard about Friday, they definitely went over the top,” junior left wing John Longman said.
Although many spectators were distracted from the game by the events happening in the crowd, the hockey team managed to defeat Lake Catholic, 3-2.
A version of this article appeared in print on 14 December 2011, on page 3 of The Shakerite.
