Georgia officials have recommended Atlanta Hawks guard Dennis Schroder be prosecuted for felony aggravated battery, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports, citing court records.
Schroder was arrested and charged with misdemeanor battery in September after a fight at a hookah bar in the Atlanta suburb of Brookhaven, where he lives.
According to the Journal-Constitution, DeKalb Assistant Solicitor-General Tommy McNulty recommended in a Feb. 26 letter to the DeKalb County District Attorney’s Office that Schroder and three other defendants face felony charges, saying they “maliciously” and seriously injured the victim.
“The victim’ s medical records … indicate that the victim suffered a torn meniscus and a torn Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL),” the letter stated, according to the Journal-Constitution. “These injuries require multiple surgeries and extensive rehabilitation. As such, this case should be handled by the District Attorney’ s Office.”
The case is currently in the hands of the district attorney’s office. The Hawks told the Journal-Constitution that they had no comment on the recommendation that Schroder be charged with a felony. The team previously said he would face discipline after legal proceedings had concluded.
NBA players are subject to fines and suspensions under the personal conduct policy in their contracts.
According to a police report obtained by ESPN in September, officers responded at 2 a.m. ET Sept. 29 to a fight call at the hookah bar, 6am.
That report said a security camera caught Schroder and several others in a heated exchange with another man. The report said Schroder initiated physical contact by shoving the man. The video also showed Schroder and the others striking the man with their hands and feet, according to the report. Security intervened and pushed Schroder and the others away from the man, the report stated.
According to that initial report, the man suffered scratches to his right knee and complained of right ankle pain.
Source : ESPN
