High school track and field runner who hit opponent in head with baton speaks out
I.C. Norcom High School senior Alaila Everett in Virginia claims the viral incident of her hitting an opponent with a baton, causing a concussion, was an accident.
The Virginia high school track and field athlete who was seen bashing an opponent's head with a baton during a race has been charged with assault and battery, Lynchburg Commonwealth’s Attorney Office confirmed to Fox News Digital.
I.C. Norcom High School student athlete Alaila Everett was seen smashing her baton on the head of Brookville High School junior Kaelen Tucker during a championship meet last week. Footage of the incident went viral in the following days, prompting national controversy and backlash against Everett.
Tucker was later diagnosed with a concussion and possible skull fracture.
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Tucker and her family members did not definitively say whether they would press charges against Everett after the incident in an interview with WSET ABC 13. However, charges have now officially been pressed, as Everett faces one misdemeanor count assault and battery.
Everett has since said the hits were accidental, in interviews with WAVY and "Good Morning America."
Prior to the charges being announced on Everett, the Portsmouth NAACP released a statement defending the embattled teen on Wednesday.
"Alaila is NOT AN ATTACKER and media headlines that allude towards that in any way is shameful. We understand the sensitivity of the circumstances for both athletes and their families involved but this narrative must not go unaddressed," the statement read.
"Alaila is an honor student and a star athlete at the historic I.C. Norcom High School. From all accounts, she is an exceptional young leader and scholar whose athletic talent has been well documented and recognized across our state. She has carried herself with integrity both on and off the field and any narrative that adjudicates her guilty of any criminal activity is a violation of her due process rights."
Fox News Digital has reached out to Everett's family via the Portsmouth Public School District for comment.
Tucker recounted the incident in an interview with WSET ABC 13 last Friday, and said the entire section gasped when they saw the repeated baton bashing.
"The whole section just gasped," Tucker told the station about those around her in the bleachers. "We had family come from out of town. Her godparents were here from Myrtle Beach. Everybody just gasped. When I saw her go down, all I could do is run out of the bleachers. I just knew I had to get to her.
The Virginia high school track and field athlete who was seen bashing an opponent's head with a baton during a race has been charged with assault and battery. (Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports)
"She was kind of hysterical because she just couldn’t believe that’s what had happened."
Everett claims the hits occurred because she lost her balance and her baton got "stuck" behind her opponent's back.
"After a couple times of hitting her, my baton got stuck behind her back like this, and it rolled up her back. I lost my balance when I pumped my arms again. She got hit," Everett said in an interview with WAVY. "I know my intentions and I would never hit someone on purpose."
Everett also said that while she caused physical pain for Tucker, there is not enough empathy for Everett's own "mental" impact.
"Everybody has feelings, so you’re physically hurt, but you’re not thinking of my mental," Everett said. "They are assuming my character, calling me ghetto and racial slurs, death threats… all of this off of a nine-second video."
During an interview with Good Morning America on Wednesday, Everett and her family showed a different angle of the footage, and re-enacted the incident to try and prove it was an accident.
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I.C. Norcom High School student athlete Alaila Everett was seen smashing her baton on the head of Brookville High School junior Kaelen Tucker during a championship meet last week. (Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports)
"Her arm was literally hitting the baton like this until she got a little ahead and my arm got stuck like this," Everett said while using a family member to represent Tucker during the incident in the clip.
The Virginia High School League (VHSL) previously issued a statement to Fox News Digital on the matter.
"The VHSL does not comment on individuals or disciplinary actions due to FERPA," the league's statement read. "The actions taken by the meet director to disqualify the runner were appropriate and correct. We thoroughly review every instance like this that involves player safety with the participating schools. The VHSL membership has always made it a priority to provide student-athletes with a safe environment for competition."
Fox News Digital's Scott Thompson contributed to this report.
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