Fla. School Allegedly Suspended Student for Gay Porn Work

Officials from a Florida high school are coming under fire this week for allegedly suspending a student after finding out he had appeared in a number of gay porn clips, the British newspaper the Daily Mail reports.

The Huffington Post reports that the story first broke on Reddit when a poster, who claimed to be a friend of Robert Marucci, said that the senior was bullied after his peers discovered that he was not only a student at Cocoa High School in Coca, Fla., but also a gay porn actor for the popular gay porn website Sean Cody. As a result, the school administration allegedly suspended him for "causing a campus disturbance."

The friend wrote that Marucci, 18, was suspended for 10 days. Though officials let him back into the school, he could have missed graduation.

"I feel like I have been treated unfairly and this is unjust," Marucci told Florida's WKMG. "This was completely legal. I didn't break any laws, and this took place out of the school."

The school's initial move to suspend Marucci sparked out rage amongst friends and family. His mother, Melyssa Lieb, said she strongly supports her son.

"I think he's the most awesome person in the world," told the news station. "He stood up and he was the man of the house when I couldn't be."

According to reports, students discovered Marucci's videos two weeks ago on a website and shared the images with each other via their phones. Marucci, who goes by the name "Noel" on Sean Cody, appears in a number images and videos that show him posing naked and having sex with other men, and in some clips, unprotected sex with other men. In his introductory video, he talks about his love for surfing.

Administrators that suspended Marucci say he threatened to bring weapons to school - an allegation he denies. Nevertheless, Marucci's mother says the bullying and threats were not why he was suspended from school. She says the school's principal, Dr. Stephanie Soliven, told her that Marucci was "expelled due to his explicit lifestyle career."

"I think that it is [her] morals and her personal beliefs and I don't think that this is anybody's business except for my son. The children at the school found it [the porn] and she didn't do anything to stop it," Lieb added.

Several students have shown support for Marucci as dozens have staged a walkout last Friday. A Facebook group was also set up to show support for the student and to put pressure on the school's decision. As of this writing the group has nearly 80 members.

Marucci and his family said last weekend that they wanted an apology from school officials and want him to be able to graduate in May.

The New York Daily News reported Tuesday that Marucci will return to class on Wednesday, Jan. 22, after meeting with Soliven.

"He said he was eager to get back to school," spokeswoman Michelle Irwin told the NY Daily News. "He will be back in school tomorrow."