Case Closed in Clemson Players’ Brawl

COLUMBIA, S.C. â€”  Solicitor Joe Watson said today that no criminal charges will be filed in a fight involving several Clemson basketball players and two campus security guards.

“I’m not going to submit it to the grand jury,� Watson said in a telephone interview from his office in Greenville. “It’s over as far as a criminal investigation.�

Saying that both sides share the blame for the fight, Watson added that the security guards acted “unprofessionally,� cursing at and chasing the students after police arrived. He said the two security guards eventually had to be subdued by police.

The fight occurred Jan. 21 in the parking lot of an apartment complex that serves as the basketball players’ dormitory. Watson declined to identify the players involved, but sources said 6-foot, 11-inch junior center Elden Campbell was among those who took part in the fight.

The two Crowe’s Inc. security guards involved in the fight suffered minor injuries. The fight, which Watson said lasted two or three minutes, occurred shortly after Clemson downed Western Carolina at Littlejohn Coliseum.

“It was basically a case where both sides acted immaturely. Basically, there were aggravating points on both sides,� Watson said. “I’m not pointing blame at any one of them.�

The fight prompted the Clemson Police Department to ask for help from the State Law Enforcement Division. Watson said that probably neither he nor the state officers would have been involved in the investigation had athletes not been involved in the fight.

“That was the thing that made it bigger than it was, because some Clemson athletes were involved,� he said. “The Police Department wanted someone who was independent to look at their findings.�

Watson said statements were taken from 20 to 25 people during the probe, which took longer than expected because those involved initially lied about what happened.