Fallout from the Ridley hockey case
From the moment I heard that charges had been filed in connection with an on-ice fight between a team from Ridley and one from CBWest, I knew it was going to a controversial story. I wasn’t disappointed.
A year and a half later, the verdicts finally came in on Friday.
And the story still is not done. First things first, because I know a lot of people in Ridley are wondering, and they are not especially happy with our coverage of the trial.
A couple of ground rules here. This incident involved a team of kids from Ridley High vs. a team from CBWest High School. The game took place at a rink in Hatfield. That’s in Montgomery County. So when the charges were filed against three members of the Ridley team, it meant that the legal process involved was not going to take place in Delaware County, but rather where the event took place.
So last week’s trial was not in the Media Courthouse, but rather in Norristown.
People immediately noticed that we did not have one of our few remaining Daily Times staffers handle the trial. That’s true.
The stories were written by Carl Hessler, a reporter for our sister paper in Pottstown, the Mercury. Carl has handled the Montco courts for years and is as good as it gets when it comes to covering justice in Montco.
It does not mean, as some readers suggested, that he would favor the Montgomery County D.A.’s office, or the kids from CB West. Carl doesn’t play that way. He reports it down the middle.
To be honest, I’ve had several conversations with Ridley parents since these charges were first filed. They believe the entire thing was blown out of proportion and they insist the video backed up their claim that the CB West kids were not innocent in all this.
They insist the video would show that one of the CBWest players skated nearly the length of the ice to confront a Ridley player.
I promised them we would cover the case when it went to trial and accurately report what went on.
That’s what we did.
The defense made the case and said the video backed it up - that the CBWest kids were not blameless in all this.
To review, with a few minutes left in playoff game in which they were losing, 7-1, the prosecution alleged the Ridley kids decided to take out their frustration by instigating fights with the kids from CBWest.
Three kids from Ridley were charged with simple assault and conspiracy.
None of the three kids took the stand in their own defense.
But in their deliberations, the jury did ask to view a crucial piece of video again. The Ridley parents insist it proves that one of the key CBWest players was actually the aggressor, instigating a fight with a Ridley player.
The defense attacked the testimony of the CBWest player, implying he was he aggressor and saying he gave inconsistent testimony that was not reliable. The jury looked at the video again, and also had the CBWest player’s testimony re-read to them.
After more than 10 hours of deliberation, the jury returned a mixed verdict. Two of the Ridley players were convicted of both charges filed against them, simple assault and conspiracy.
The third, the player whose father insisted was actually the victim of aggression on the part of the CBWest player, was acquitted of the conspiracy charge. The jury deadlocked on the simple assault charge. It is not yet known if the D.A.’s office will seek to retry him.
We reported the verdicts as they came in on Friday.
Of course, a lot of people in Ridley continue to insist our coverage was not fair, that it was stacked against them. I disagree.
There is one other person we heard from after the trial.
Ridley School District Superintendent Lee Ann Wetzel pointed out that, like most high school hockey teams, the Ridley squad is not an actual school program.
It’s what is known as a club sport. Yes, the three players all attended Ridley High. No, they are not actually Ridley High School athletes.
Ice hockey is not a PIAA sport. It does not fall under the auspices of the high school. The coach is not a school district employee.
In effect, it’s akin to other community-sponsored groups such as swim clubs, AAU basketball and other sport clubs. All of which is true. Technically.
But I think you would be hard-pressed to find anyone who does not believe that this club amounts to the Ridley High hockey team.
But I will concede the point to the superintendent.
But I have a question.
If the Ridley team had won the title and a Flyers Cup, would she have reacted the same way, stressing that the team is not really connected to Ridley High? Just wondering.
I knew from the second that this case hit our radar, that I could be sure of a couple of things.
It was going to be very controversial.
And people would have problems with our coverage.
I was not disappointed.