High school basketball coach slams student into bleachers, chokes him, KY cops say

The head coach of a high school basketball team in Kentucky was arrested after police say he assaulted and choked a student.

Richard Gatewood, the boys’ basketball coach at Moore High School in Louisville, was charged with assault and strangulation following the incident on Tuesday, Feb. 7.

He was involved in a verbal argument with a middle school student in the gym Tuesday night, and it became physical when the coach grabbed the student “and slammed him forcefully down into the bleachers,” according to the Jefferson County Public Schools Police Department.

The coach then placed the student into a rear chokehold, “effectively strangling him and causing the student’s feet to leave the floor,” police said in a criminal complaint.

Police said the alleged assault caused the student “significant redness and bruising.” He also had a large bruise on his head, according to police.

School video footage captured the incident, and the coach admitted to his involvement, police said.

Gatewood remains employed, as the school district goes “through our policies and procedures,” a spokeswoman told WDRB. Gatewood is an administrator at the high school, the TV station reported.

But the coach has been temporarily removed from his position, with the junior varsity coach taking over his duties on an interim basis, WAVE 3 reported. Moore High School’s varsity team has a 10-16 record this season.

Gatewood will be arraigned Thursday morning, court records show.

This story was originally published February 9, 2023 at 7:00 AM with the headline "High school basketball coach slams student into bleachers, chokes him, KY cops say."