VISTA, Calif. (KGTV) — Anger and frustration is growing among parents and students at Vista High School over a locker room incident involving members of the football team.
On Wednesday, parents, students, and alumni protested outside the school for several hours, demanding justice and action from the school and the Vista Unified School District.
The school has not specified what exactly happened inside the locker room, but officials said they confirmed players engaged in highly inappropriate conduct and that conduct did not involve sexual assault.
“I felt it was important to come to the school because it could happen to any of our kids, it could happen to my kid,” said Nancy Cervantes, a parent who used to have a student at the school.
The San Diego County Sheriff's Department said there is video evidence of a teenage boy being forcefully pushed to the ground. The boy was not hurt and did not require medical attention.
Some who've seen the video said they found it very disturbing.
“I just thought it was so inhumane of them and there were so many people around them that didn't do anything about it,” said Diego Mondragon, a graduate of the school.
Hours into the protest, there was a large response from the sheriff's department after deputies said protesters went into the parking lot and blocked cars attempting to leave.
The district said the varsity football head coach is on leave until the outside investigation is complete.
Some parents said their kids have seen threats to the school on social media after the allegations surfaced and are worried about sending them to school. The district said they are closely following all potential threats.
ABC 10News asked the district superintendent for comment on the demands from those protesting, but in an email, district officials said they were not available to respond as they were involved in other commitments.
