A 12-and-under girls' softball tournament game in Sugar Land ended with one man hospitalized with a traumatic brain injury and two parents in jail. Sugar Land police arrested Kiarious Hall and his wife, Jazmine Hall, after a spectator dispute at Imperial Park turned violent on Saturday, October 24, FOX 26 Houston reports.
The key facts:
- Charges: Kiarious Hall faces two counts of assault causing bodily injury. Jazmine Hall faces one count. Both were booked into the Fort Bend County Jail.
- Injuries: Attorney Steve Shellist, who represents the injured man, says his client has a skull fracture, a fractured cheekbone, three brain bleeds, and a blood clot. He was taken to St. Luke's Hospital and remains hospitalized.
- The video: Charging documents describe bystander footage showing three men arguing before Kiarious Hall swung a metal water bottle into a man's face. The man fell to the ground unconscious. Police say the angle makes it unclear whether Hall was touched first.
- The second swing: Court documents say Hall swung the bottle again, leading to a struggle with a second man, Gary Greaser, who suffered cuts to his forehead, chin, arms, and knees.
- Jazmine Hall's role: According to court documents, video shows her running in and throwing punches until bystanders broke it up.
- Her job: Jazmine Hall was an assistant principal at Lamar Junior High. Lamar CISD says she reported the incident to the district and resigned, effective Monday.
Two versions of the lead-up
In the probable cause affidavits, Kiarious Hall told officers he was cheering for his daughter's team when Greaser confronted him, saying he wasn't allowed to cheer right before a pitch. Hall said a verbal dispute followed, and then another man approached. He claims he was elbowed and poked in the chest and acted in self-defense.
Shellist disputes that. He says his client never touched Hall and only stepped in to calm things down. He also says he expects the Fort Bend County District Attorney's Office to upgrade the misdemeanor charges to a felony, arguing that striking someone with a metal cup is aggravated assault.
The league's response
Timbergrove Sports Association declined an interview but issued a statement confirming that both injured spectators belong to its program. It said the people arrested have no affiliation with the association, and it stressed that violence has no place in youth sports.
The charges are allegations at this stage. By Hall's own account to police, it all started over cheering at a 12-and-under softball game.
Source: FOX 26 Houston