The State Law Enforcement Division of South Carolina will investigate allegations that a School Resource Officer at Pee Dee Academy struck a student athlete in the head with his stun gun after a high school baseball game. The Lee Academy player stepped on the officer’s foot during the altercation.
No further details regarding the investigation have been released at this time.
This unfortunate incident took place after a high school baseball game in Marion County. There is a lot of missing context that does not provide a full understanding of what happened or why.
Pee Dee Academy defeated Lee Academy.
Pee Dee Academy was chartered by the state of South Carolina in 1965. It enrolls approximately 450 students in Grades K-12 in the small town of Mullins. Lee Academy was also established in 1965. It enrolls approximately 300 students in Grades K-12 in the small town of Bishopville.
Both private schools compete on the Class 2A level of SCISA athletics. The Cavaliers traveled about an hour to play the Golden Eagles in high school baseball on March 25.
The home side won in shutout fashion by a final score of 7-0 to pick up its eighth win of the season as the No. 42-ranked team in the state. Not only did the visitors go home sad, they had to deal with the aftermath of an uncomfortable postgame incident that took place just outside of the stadium.
A high school baseball player was struck in the head.
A disturbing video has gone viral on social media in recent days. It appears to show a School Resource Officer at Pee Dee Academy strike a Lee Academy player in the head with his stun gun while his arm is wrapped around the student athlete’s neck.
The original two minute and 30 second video that was posted to Facebook provides a more complete understanding of the incident. The officer repeated claims he only struck the athlete in the head because the athlete was stepping on his foot with cleats. He also sent a civilian to his patrol car to get an extra pair of handcuffs. The requested handcuffs were not used as far as I can tell.
However, the full video still does not give the full context of what led to that moment.
According to Marion, South Carolina-native Faye Martin Joye, the officer was not drunk. She claims he was just trying to deescalate a “20-minute fiasco” that stemmed from his attempt to stop a boy’s mother from going after an umpire on the way to the parking lot because of a bad call.
“The entire family then approached the officer. There was cursing and arguing. The officer was then surrounded by many people and it was very scary. It went on for a while and then 911 was called.”
Marion County Sheriff’s Office Victim Advocate Supervisor Tammy Erwin said the matter was turned over to the State Law Enforcement Division for investigation. The deputy in question has also been reassigned pending the results of the investigation.