Ipswich schools dispute parents' claim of fake cigars in photo that led to lacrosse semifinal forfeit

The Ipswich High School principal and the superintendent have disputed claims made by the parents of six lacrosse players who were suspended from their final game because of photos showing them with cigars.

In a statement Friday, they said a key piece of evidence, a receipt, was time stamped 20 minutes after parents learned their sons had violated rules.

The boys lacrosse team forfeited their state semifinal game Tuesday after the school district suspended six seniors from playing because they were photographed with cigars after graduation. It is against Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) rules to consume tobacco. But, the students' parents claimed the cigars in the photos were fake.

After days without comment, the district finally responded to the controversy Friday, claiming "the information that apparently has been provided to the media and has been circulated is fundamentally misleading."

Earlier this week, parent John Gianakakis said his son and a few of his teammates asked him for help to find a way to participate in the post-graduation cigar smoking without violating MIAA rules. The parents said the cigars used by the players in the photos were fake, made from dried paper and tea. They also showed school administrators a receipt from a store to prove it.

CBS News Boston asked the coach, principal, and superintendent multiple times for their version of events. They declined multiple times.

Superintendent Brian Blake and Principal Jonathan Mitchell issued a joint two-page statement Friday disputing the parents version of events that led to the forfeit.

Blake and Mitchell said they received two photos Monday morning, the day before the game, showing six players smoking cigars after graduation on Sunday, June 7.

They began an investigation and spoke to the students and their parents to give them "the opportunity to explain their version of events."

"Administrators were told that the cigars were "fake" and that in fact they did not contain tobacco but, instead, chamomile and English breakfast tea," Blake and Mitchell said, adding that the parents showed them a "receipt from Shaw's grocery store."

District administrators met on the morning of Tuesday, June 9, hours before the game and "determined that the cigars were in fact not "fake"" and that the receipt "had the date and time smudged out."

The families of the six players were then told they had been suspended for the semifinal game and, according to Blake and Mitchell, the rest of the team voted to forfeit.

After CBS News Boston first reported the story Tuesday evening, Mitchell said he went to Shaw's to get their copy of the receipt for the tea.

"The manager at Shaw's was able to print out a receipt that matched the details of the purchased tea bags with a date of June 8th at 1:03 pm, Mr. Mitchell had alerted the six families about the potential violation and the impending investigation by email at 12:41 pm on June 8th," the principal and superintendent said.

"The receipt indicates that the "tea" allegedly used in the "fake" cigars was actually purchased 20 minutes after the families were notified of the potential violation." 

The school also said that only one of the two photos from the incident was provided to media outlets. The other photo allegedly showed "a cloud of smoke surrounding one of the students; and a torch-type lighter visible in the hand of another of the students." Administrators also said that the cigars were "significantly shorter than they were in the first photograph."  

"We fully understand the disappointment, frustration, and emotions that have accompanied this outcome," Blake and Mitchell said. "One of the most important lessons we teach young people is that choices have consequences, even when those consequences are difficult or painful. While this outcome was heartbreaking for the student-athletes, their families, their coaches, and our school community, we remain committed to applying our policies consistently and acting in what we believe to be the best interests of the integrity of our educational and athletic programs."