This afternoon we started to put the pieces together of the Chase Scanlan situation. According to a Syracuse.com report, Scanlan “was involved in what campus police labeled a domestic incident a day before he was suspended by the team, according to law enforcement sources and people familiar with the case.” He was not charged with a crime by campus police, but Onondaga County authorities have joined the investigation, and they are meeting with the potential victim at “her convenience.”
It all makes for a still murky situation. John Desko met with the media this afternoon and provided very little clarity on the situation. A plethora of questions were posed by local media about the events and reasons surrounding his suspension and the ensuing fallout, but instead of explanations Desko kept pointing back to his opening statement. At times the SU head coach seemed bemused with the angles reporters tried to pry information, wearing a small smirk as the press conference wore on. He knew they were hitting a brick wall.
That opening statement?
So just to follow the bouncing lax ball, Scanlan was suspended, then reinstated, but even though he’s practicing with the team, he’s not traveling for this weekend’s game. Desko characterized it as a violation of team rules, which we discussed earlier this morning. That seems to shield him from explaining anything further. Nonetheless, if it is indeed a domestic incident, the SU lax team should be commended for standing against it. If details become clearer on the validity and/or severity of the incident, it will affect how SU is seen as handling this situation. Scanlan’s dad says the allegations are baseless, but clearly his teammates don’t feel the same. His high school coach has advised him to transfer. If Scanlan’s name is cleared, SU won’t suffer in the public eye. If details emerge where he’s guilty, it’ll look terrible that they allowed him to be with the team.
