The USA Hockey Board of Directors has determined that USA Hockey’s policies prohibiting Sexual Misconduct and Child Abuse shall be the same as the applicable policies of the Center, and all persons within the jurisdiction of USA Hockey shall comply with the Sexual Misconduct and Child Abuse policies of the Center. All capitalized terms not defined herein shall have the meaning set forth in the SafeSport Code.
As the National Governing Body for ice hockey in the United States, USA Hockey has adopted the policies prohibiting Sexual Misconduct and Child Abuse as set forth in the SafeSport Code, which may be found at uscenterforsafesport.org. Any violation of the Sexual Misconduct or Child Abuse policies of the Center by a Participant shall subject such person to appropriate disciplinary action by the Center and/or USA Hockey, including but not limited to suspension, permanent suspension, and/or referral to law enforcement authorities.
As set forth in more detail in Section IV, below, any Adult Participant, is considered a mandatory reporter.
If an Adult Participant reasonably suspects that an incident(s) of Sexual Misconduct has occurred, they must immediately (within 24 hours) report the incident(s) to the Center.
If an Adult Participant reasonably suspects that Child Abuse or child sexual abuse has occurred, they must immediately (within 24 hours) report the incident(s) to both the Center and to applicable law enforcement authorities. An adult Participant’s failure to report may subject such person to disciplinary action by the Center and/or USA Hockey.
USA Hockey may not be aware of a report made to the Center or law enforcement and may not know the circumstances or allegations being made regarding a member of USA Hockey. Accordingly, in addition to any report to the Center and law enforcement authorities, all Adult Participants are requested and strongly encouraged to promptly report any alleged violations of this Sexual Misconduct and Child Abuse Policy to USA Hockey as set forth in Section IV below so that USA Hockey can take immediate action when appropriate to protect USA Hockey Participants.
The duty to report to Center and USA Hockey and Center’s jurisdiction to investigate shall not supersede any local, state, or federal reporting requirements or jurisdiction, and shall not affect or impair the ability of any person that reports to the Center from also reporting to the appropriate local, state or federal authorities.
It is a violation of the SafeSport Code for a Participant to engage in Sexual Misconduct. The Center shall have authority and jurisdiction over the investigation and resolution of any allegations of violations by any Participant of the Sexual Misconduct policies set forth in the SafeSport Code. Sexual Misconduct offenses include, but are not limited to: (as such terms are defined in the SafeSport Code):
Sexual or Gender-related Harassment;
Non-consensual Sexual Contact (or attempts to commit the same);
Non-consensual Sexual Intercourse (or attempts to commit the same);
Sexual Exploitation;
Bullying or Hazing or Other Inappropriate Conduct of a sexual nature, including:
— an adult Participant engaging in an intimate or romantic relationship where an imbalance of power exists,
— an adult Participant intentionally exposing a minor to content or imagery of a sexual nature, including but not limited to pornography, sexual comment(s), sexual gestures, and/or sexual situation(s).
— an adult Participant intentionally exposing private areas, or inducing another to do so, to an adult where there is an imbalance of power, or to a minor, or
— an adult Participant engaging in inappropriate physical contact with a Participant where an imbalance of power exists.
The Center shall also have exclusive jurisdiction to investigate and resolve allegations that a Participant has committed Child Abuse (as defined herein) or has a Criminal Charge or Disposition involving Child Abuse or Sexual Misconduct. The behaviors or conduct prohibited by the SafeSport Code may be found at uscenterforsafesport.org.
The Center shall also have authority and jurisdiction over the investigation and resolution of reports or allegations of the USA Hockey Safe Sport policies other than Sexual Misconduct (e.g., Physical Misconduct, Bullying, Locker Room Policy, etc.) where such conduct is reasonably related to and accompanies a report or allegations involving Sexual Misconduct.
Notwithstanding the jurisdiction of the Center as set forth above, prior to the Center expressly exercising such jurisdiction, USA Hockey and Member Programs retain the authority to address any allegations of sexual abuse or misconduct on an interim/temporary basis, including through the issuance of a summary suspension over such Participant. Upon the Center’s issuance of a Notice of Exercise of Jurisdiction, any temporary suspension, discipline, or other measures previously imposed by USA Hockey, an Affiliate or Member Program will be automatically and immediately adopted by the Center as its own, will be applicable throughout the Center’s jurisdiction, and will remain in effect unless and until the Center modifies those measures. Once the Center exercises jurisdiction over particular allegations regarding a particular Participant, neither USA Hockey nor any Member Program may issue a new suspension in response to those allegations. However, USA Hockey and Member Programs may still put in place any necessary safety plan(s) or interim measure(s) short of those measures that may deny or threaten to deny a Participant’s opportunity to participate.