Carl Sledge.Photo:Fulton County Sheriff’s Office
Fulton County Sheriff’s Office
A volunteer high school football coach in Georgia made headlines on Saturday when he allegedly punched one of his own players in the stomach during the first quarter. The attack was caught on video during the televised Great Atlanta Bash weekend triple-header,TMZreports.
After the incident, Atlanta Public School Police escorted Carl Lovell Sledgeoff the football field and into a local jail, where he stayed overnight,according to his online booking records. Charged with simple battery, Sledge was released on a $5,000 surety bond Sunday, according to the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office online records.
Sledge, who was not a teacher at the school, will also face administrative charges from the school district, according to Atlanta Public School spokesman Seth Coleman,Atlanta News First reported.
The player —listed on an online rosteras defensive back Cam’ron Barber for The Raiders at Benjamin E. Mays High School — doubled over and clutched his stomach after the punch,according to video footage from the televised game. (Barber, a 5’8” junior, weighs 150 pounds. Sledge, who is 6’1”, weighs 187 pounds, according to the sheriff’s office intake records.)
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“They work the kids to death,” Parthena Stokes, the mother of a Raiders football player, told Atlanta News First. “They practice them to death.” Coaches are verbally and physically abusive to the high school players, who are afraid to speak up for fear of retaliation, she alleged to the outlet. Stokes said she hoped the recent allegations will shakeup football leadership, the newspaper reported. “I want to make sure they have done background checks on all the coaches,” the concerned mother added.
Sledge graduated from Benjamin E. Mays, according to hisFacebook profile. It is unclear if he’s retained an attorney to speak on his behalf.
source: people.com
