College baseball players charged with hazing and injuring teammates, SC sheriff says
Three members of a college baseball team in South Carolina were arrested on hazing charges, the Florence County Sheriff’s Office said Monday.
The Francis Marion University baseball players were accused of hitting and injuring younger teammates as part of an initiation, the sheriff’s office said in a news release.
On Saturday, David Tyler Mangum and Jon-Mitchell Carter, both 21, and 22-year-old Noah Hunter Jones were charged with hazing, jail records show.
Francis Marion spokesman Tucker Mitchell said the three baseball players have been indefinitely suspended from the university, pending the sheriff’s office investigation, the Florence Morning News reported.
Mangum, of Durham, North Carolina; Jones, of Greenville, South Carolina; and Carter, of Hamer, South Carolina, were not listed on the baseball team’s roster on the Francis Marion athletics website.
“They were suspended from playing for the team before the season began,” Mitchell told the Morning News. “They have not played in any games this season. They haven’t participated in any team activities since the incident took place.”
The incident happened Feb. 5 at a location off of the Francis Marion campus, which is a reason the university asked the sheriff’s office to lead the investigation, according to the release.
Mangum, Jones, and Carter are accused of intentionally hitting underclassmen who are members of the baseball team, the sheriff’s office said. The victims were hurt during the initiation, including one player who needed medical treatment, according to the release.
Mitchell said that player needed surgery, the Morning News reported.
After being taken to the Florence County Detention Center, Mangum, Jones, and Carter were released on $1,000 personal recognizance bonds, the sheriff’s office said. All three are scheduled to appear in court on April 29, Florence County judicial records show.
If convicted of the misdemeanor, all three would each face a maximum sentence of a year in jail and a $500 fine, according to South Carolina law.
The Francis Marion baseball team played its first game this season on Feb. 13, and currently has a 7-4 record.
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This story was originally published March 9, 2021 at 8:59 AM with the headline "College baseball players charged with hazing and injuring teammates, SC sheriff says."
