Armwood investigation: this could take a while

Posted Nov 18, 2011 by Bill Ward

Updated Nov 18, 2011 at 11:27 AM

So Armwood’s football players and coaches now know they can compete for the remainder of the playoffs, as long as they keep winning, of course.

But what can the Hawks expect next in the FHSAA’s investigation of the eligibility of offensive lineman Jack Lightsey? For starters, the FHSAA’s “investigative consultant” has completed his fact-finding mission to Armwood. He has interviewed Lightsey, whose eligibility was brought into question following a local TV station’s report showing his family own multiple properties and that his parents sometimes live in homes outside Armwood’s district. The investigator also interviewed teachers and faculty at Armwood.

Now that this portion of the investigation is complete, there are specific steps the FHSAA will take to determine if a violation has taken place. And if the FHSAA does say there were violations, Armwood has a chance to respond and appeal.

According to FHSAA spokesperson Corey Sobers, the process is lengthy and will take time. In an e-mail sent to the media today, Sobers explains exactly how the process works:

Once the investigation has taken place from a third-party investigative consultant, the findings will be reported to the FHSAA. Our office will review those and compile a list of what the Association feels are potential violations and that is sent to the school. This list of potential violations is NOT an official ruling and I want that point to be very clear.

From there, this information is used for the FHSAA to make a decision on each of the potential violations. From there, the Association will decide whether to accept the school’s response (if they disagree with a potential violation) or if it does not match up with the Association’s position, and the FHSAA will provide a final report to the school, involving all sanctions (if there are any). If there are sanctions, the school has the right to appeal to the Sectional Appeals committee and they will decide whether they rule in favor of the school or not. If the appeal is denied, the school has the right to appeal to the Board of Directors. The Board of Directors ruling is final.

There is no set timeline for the FHSAA to send the final report to the school as the Association will do its due diligence.

So sit back and relax. Do some holiday shopping. This will likely take some time. In the recent case of Hillsborough High, which was investigated and eventually cleared of any wrong doing associated with an incoming freshman’s contact with the football program, the iprocess from notification of possible violations to final ruling took nearly six months.