Three staff members from a local youth football group are facing charges for endangering the welfare of children.
The Steel Valley Midget Football Association’s director Aaron Knight along with “Camp Ruffhouse” director Michael Todd and camp executive director Loren Ford are all charged.
According to the Somerset County district attorney, the nonprofit organization rented out Laurel Hill State Park in Somerset County from July 7 to July 12 for the camp. The camp is for children ages 11-14.
Other park goers first reported a boy being assaulted by two other boys on a park road. Officers then discovered he was an 11-year-old camper with “Camp Ruffhouse.” The boy told police he was running away because of physical and verbal abuse from other campers and mistreatment from coaches.
Laurel Hill State Park rangers then received a report of a boy who arrived home with a black eye and swollen lip after attending the camp. He told his mother it was from older players at the camp (13-14 years old).
The boy also reported that younger players (11-12 years old) were often subject to physical assaults from older players. He said if they told coaches, the assaults only got worse.
Both boys reported that when they told camp staffers about these issues, they were never addressed. Instead, the boys were called snitches and were told to hit their aggressors back. They said those who complained were often punished by being made to run laps or stand in the middle of hitting drills.
This story is developing and will be updated.
