Isaiah Meyer-Crothers, who was bullied by Mitchell Miller for years at school, detailed his abuse by the former Bruins defenseman in a letter Wednesday.
“I have been bullied since I was in 1st grade,” Meyer-Crothers, a Black, developmentally disabled classmate of Miller’s, said in a letter released on his behalf by the Hockey Diversity Alliance. “Mitchell used to ask me to sit with him on the bus and then he and his friends would punch me in the head. This happened my whole time in school. When I went to junior high Mitchell would spit in my face and call me a N word. I stopped telling because they called me a snitch and I would get made fun of.
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“I had to say I was ‘his n—–‘ to sit at his table and he made me clean the whole table. He threw food in my face. I was called ‘n—–‘ every day.”
Meyer-Crothers said that Miller beat him up in junior high, and after Miller was expelled from school, Miller’s friends started bullying him.
Incredibly heart-breaking read but a necessary one. Our actions or lack thereof, have real-life consequences. A statement from Isaiah Meyer-Crothers in his own words sent to Akim Aliu, HDA Chair, on November 8, 2022 which he asked the HDA to release publicly on his behalf. pic.twitter.com/dctpDdrXaL
— Hockey Diversity Alliance (@TheOfficialHDA) November 9, 2022
Wednesday’s letter marks the first time Meyer-Crothers has spoken publicly since the Bruins signed Miller last Friday and then rescinded its contract offer Sunday amid public backlash over the move.
In 2016, Miller admitted to bullying in an Ohio juvenile court. According to a police report, Miller and a classmate rubbed a candy push-pop inside a urinal at the school during a girls’ basketball game and enticed Meyer-Crothers to put it in his mouth, nearly falling over with laughter when he did. Both Miller and the classmate were punished by the school with suspensions.
Miller’s punishment was greater, per a police report obtained by The Athletic in 2020 and first reported by The Arizona Republic, because he lied repeatedly to school administrators, who confirmed the reports of other students by using the school’s security cameras.
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At least 10 NHL clubs took Miller off their 2020 draft lists, and Miller provided all 31 teams with a letter of apology while a freshman at the University of North Dakota. Miller was selected by the Arizona Coyotes in the fourth round of the 2020 NHL Draft but had his draft status revoked by the team after it was revealed he had been convicted in juvenile court of bullying.
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Miller’s letter of apology, obtained by The Athletic, consisted of two lengthy paragraphs that painted his juvenile conviction as a life-changing event. It also included “character references” from several hockey coaches and his USHL billet family.
The Bruins signed Miller to an entry-level contract, despite the controversy surrounding the defenseman. Off the ice, the team believed Miller had matured.
“From everything I heard, he was working on himself, working in programs to better himself,” Bruins president Cam Neely said.
In his letter, Meyer-Crothers said he started receiving daily text messages in October until he answered Snapchat and Instagram messages from Miller. According to Meyer-Crothers, Miller apologized and said the apology wasn’t related to hockey, while also saying he was doing community work and wanted to be Meyer-Crothers’ friend.
When asked for proof from Miller, Meyer-Crothers said “he didn’t give me any [proof]. All the lies I have been told by him for so many years I don’t believe what Mitchell told me.”
“Mitchell isn’t my friend. It hurts my heart what he did to me. So I just wanted to tell everyone — when Mitchell says we’re friends it isn’t true. I can’t take more of this.”
Amid public outrage over the signing, Bruins left winger Nick Foligno said it is “hard for us to swallow,” with captain Patrice Bergeron adding that “the culture we built here goes against that type of behavior.”
NHL commissioner Gary Bettman called Miller’s actions as a 14-year-old “reprehensible” and said the Bruins did not consult the league before signing Miller.
Joni Meyer-Crothers, Isaiah’s mother, told The Athletic that the family was “blindsided” by Miller’s signing, adding the Bruins failed to reach out to them before making the move.
“The biggest thing people need to know is it’s not a one-time thing,” Meyer-Crothers said. “It was years and years and years of abuse and torment. Our son is an emotional mess at the hands of Mitchell. I’m so thankful the organization wants to help Mitchell. But you’re forgetting that there’s a victim that is traumatized for the rest of his life. What are we doing for him? Because he doesn’t have a hockey talent, his life isn’t as significant? That’s how we kind of feel.”
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The Hockey Diversity Alliance — a group of current and former NHL players aiming to eradicate racism and intolerance from hockey — said in a statement Tuesday that Miller’s agent, Eustace King, contacted its members to solicit their approval of the signing. The group said it “emphatically declined” and “asked King to drop the matter.” The HDA added that it was not consulted by the Bruins.
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In a statement on Sunday, the Bruins announced they would part ways with Miller and Neely said the Bruins thought Miller’s bullying of Meyer-Crothers was an isolated incident. Neely added that the organization rescinded its offer to Miller “based on new information” and offered an apology to the Meyer-Crothers family.
Despite the public apology, the Bruins organization still had not contacted the family at the time of parting ways with Miller.
On Monday, Neely admitted the team should have spoken with the Meyer-Crothers family before signing Miller.
“There’s a lot of people that are let down today,” Neely told reporters Monday. “I’m disappointed that we’re in this position. We shouldn’t be in this position. So, we could’ve done a better job. We should’ve done a better job.”
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When asked how Miller’s entry-level contract would be resolved, Neely declined to answer. He kept true to his promise made in Monday’s news conference that he would reach out to the family and spoke to Joni Meyer-Crothers on the phone Tuesday.
“He profusely apologized for causing more unnecessary pain to Isaiah,” Meyer-Crothers wrote in a text to The Athletic. “He asked if there was anything they could do. He understands Isaiah’s current state and offered to help us find good counseling for Isaiah to start the healing process.”
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(Photo: Codie McLachlan / The Canadian Press via AP)
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