Peyton Manning jersey banned because player's No. 18 is too close to name of local gang

Konnor Vanatta / CBS Denver

(CBS/AP) GREELEY, Colo. - A third-grader has been sent home from a Greeley school to change out of his Peyton Manning jersey because Manning's No. 18 is too close to the name of a local gang.

CBS Denver reports Konnor Vanatta was forced to take off his jersey because of a Greeley school district policy that bans clothing with "18" on it. The rule was put in place three years ago because 18th Street Gang members have been convicted of intimidation, burglary, organized crime and other violations.

Officials say they don't want any gang-related clothes at school. Also banned are 13 and 14, affiliated with other gangs, and the reverse of all three numbers, 31, 41 and 81.

John Gates, the district's security director, says he's a fan of the Broncos and their new quarterback, but the ban works and there are no plans to change it.

"I like wearing my Peyton Manning jersey," Vanatta told CBS Denver on Wednesday.

His mother Pam said he's been a fan of Manning since he was 4 and that his grandmother got him the orange jersey.

"It was absurd to me. I was shocked," Pam Vanatta said. "I was speechless."

[cindyrp]

How do these people count with the elimination of so many numbers.

[Meezermom1951]

Wouldn't it make a great deal more sense to do something about the gangs instead of giving in to them?

[lonestar9000]

It would depend on the race of the gang members. If this is a gang made up mostly of minorities, then moving against them would be seen as "racial profiling".