A sheriff's deputy in Louisiana has been terminated from his position after being arrested for engaging in a physical altercation with an umpire during a youth baseball tournament. Lieutenant Darrell Holley, 44, who served with the Oktibbeha County Sheriff's Office, was coaching the Starkville under-14s team when he confronted umpire Jeff Akins, 52, at the conclusion of the final game.
Incident details
Footage of the event shows Holley approaching Akins near the pitcher's mound in an angry manner. Akins then appears to shove Holley, who responds with a shove of his own. Subsequently, Akins seems to throw the first punch, shocking parents and players watching from the stands. Holley's son, a member of the team standing behind Akins, then strikes the umpire twice in the back of the head. As Akins turns to face the boy, Holley lands a punch to the back of the umpire's head, knocking him to the ground. Holley delivers another blow while Akins is on the floor.
Further punches are exchanged as Akins regains his feet, and both men stumble and fall while wrestling. Holley's son again punches Akins repeatedly while he is on the ground before officials and other coaches intervene to separate the parties.
Legal consequences
Both Holley and Akins were arrested and charged with fighting not in self-defense, a misdemeanor, according to Brandon Lovelady, public information officer for Starkville Police Department. Holley was held on a $1,000 bond but has since been released, while Akins was released on his own recognizance.
Employment termination
Holley was immediately fired from his role with the Oktibbeha County Sheriff's Office on Monday. Sheriff Shank Phelps stated in a press release, 'Regardless of the circumstances, the OCSO will not tolerate this type of behavior. A baseball field is supposed to be a place of fun and family; fighting has no place there.'
Tournament ban
Tournament director Mike Narmour announced that everyone involved in the fight will be banned from all future Grand Slam tournaments. He also revealed that 'harsh' measures will be implemented to prevent future incidents, including a zero-tolerance policy for arguing with umpires. 'Grand Slam Mississippi is sickened and devastated by these types of events, and there is no place for this whatsoever in youth sports or adult sports,' he said on Sunday. 'There's blame for the umpire, there's big time blame for the coach and the (involved) kids of that team. There's no right for that and there's no place for that in front of those kids. We're not going to argue with umpires. We're going to call a director if we have a problem with the umpire. Basically, any fan, coach or player that says anything to an umpire whatsoever is going to be removed from the premises immediately.'
