Officials say that Notre Dame football head coach Marcus Freeman will not be charged in the case of the alleged assault of an Indiana high school wrestling coach.
The high school wrestling coach in Indiana filed charges against Freeman last week, but prosecutors say the coach has no case against Freeman.
On Monday, the St. Joseph County, Indiana, Prosecutor’s Office said it won’t be filing any official charges.
“Based on a review of all of the evidence, the State would not be able to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that a crime occurred. While the evidence suggests that a touching may have occurred, an inadvertent touching is not sufficient. The State is therefore declining to file any criminal charges,” the prosecutor said.
The alleged assault occurred at a wrestling meet at Mishawaka High School in Mishawaka, Ind., on Jan. 3, where Freeman’s son, Vinny, attends.
Freeman supposedly reacted after New Prairie High School wrestling assistant coach Chris Fleege began having words with Vinny when the teen was coming off the mat, according to the South Bend Tribune.
Fleege claims the Notre Dame coach allegedly intervened and laid hands on the high school coach, prompting local police to respond to the incident.
After the altercation, Freeman and his family left the event, and Vinny missed his opportunity to continue competing. They were not asked to leave and left on their own.
The Notre Dame athletics department released a statement.
“Vinny Freeman, head coach Marcus Freeman’s son, was verbally accosted during and after his wrestling match by a local wrestling coach,” the university said in a statement. “Marcus and Joanna Freeman intervened and removed Vinny from the situation. At no point did Coach Freeman physically engage with anyone. We believe that the police report, which includes video evidence, fully exonerates Coach Freeman and makes clear these accusations are unfounded.”
Fleege later filed an assault report with the Mishawaka Police Department.
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Facebook at: Facebook.com/Warner.Todd.Huston, Truth Social @WarnerToddHuston, or at X/Twitter @WTHuston
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.