Acalanes Water Polo Player Faces Felony Charge After Broken Nose During Match
LAFAYETTE (CBS SF) -- A Lafayette teen is facing criminal charges after a player on an opposing team suffered a broken nose in the middle of a junior varsity water polo match.
The incident happened during a September tournament at Los Lomas High School in Walnut Creek.
By all accounts, water polo is a violent sport. But should a player ever be charged with a violent crime? That is the very real question facing a teenager at Acalanes High School in Lafayette.
According to an email sent out the community with U.S. Water Polo Association letterhead, a 15-year old boy is going to be charged with a felony crime.
According to people who have seen the video, a player for Acalanes hit a player from Bellarmine College Prep during a game as they were jostling for the ball. The blow was described as an aggressive, hard hit to the Bellarmine player's nose.
Mary Knox at the Contra Costa County District Attorney's office said she could not confirm any charges or tell KPIX any details about them, but she said the email had "factual inaccuracies." In her words, "It's a complete fiction."
The superintendent said he can't elaborate on the case or the boy.
"We won't make comment just because it's a student matter. But it is a little bit surprising that the DA's involved itself in this case," said Acalanes Union High School District Superintendent John Nickerson.
But the teen's water polo coach told the San Francisco Chronicle that this is a 15-year old sophomore who has straight A's and has absolutely no history of any problems.
I don't know any of the parameters of what occurred other than he broke a nose. But you play sports, you get hurt, said Acalanes parent Josh Edlinger.
Edlinger also said he thought the charges sounded a little bit heavy.
The U.S. Water Polo Association later put out its own email saying the local group should not have sent the letter out to the community and that it was an unauthorized use of the association's letterhead.