Gerrell Williams has become a household name across the nation after footage surfaced of him striking a 9-year-old child twice at the 2020 American Youth Football National Championships AA Div 1-7U tournament in Kissimmee, Florida.
After striking him once, Williams then yelled at his player, and then struck him a second time with enough force that the child lost his balance and fell to the ground.
According to the incident report, the child’s mother declined to press charges against Williams.
That does not mean he would get off Scott-free.
“The Osceola County Sheriff’s Office along with our local state attorney’s office have reviewed this case and the decision has been made that charges for child abuse will be filed, regardless of parent’s decision not to press charges,” Maj. Jacob Ruizsaid said in a statement Friday. “The actions of this person are despicable and there is zero tolerance when it comes to the abuse of a child.”
Williams issued a public apology on a Facebook Live video, saying, “I am going to apologize for my actions about what took place but at the end of the day, I am not going to make any excuses for it, I did it.”
