LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — A jury has found former Kansas forward Silvio de Sousa not guilty of aggravated battery for hitting a man in the face during a New Year's Day bar fight.
de Sousa hugged his lawyer and praised God following the jury's Thursday decision.
Douglas County prosecutors alleged that de Sousa hit 32-year-old Shawnee native Grant Davis so hard during the Jan. 1, 2020 bar fight in Lawrence that it blinded him in one eye. De Sousa says he hit Davis with an open palm but didn't touch his eye.
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LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Former Kansas forward Silvio de Sousa has been charged in a New Year’s Day altercation a little more than a week after announcing that he was opting out of the upcoming season.
Dorothy Kliem, a trial assistant in the Douglas County District Attorney’s office, said that although the felony count of aggravated battery wasn’t filed until Monday, the case was “reviewed promptly upon receipt,” The Kansas City Star reports.
She said the district attorney’s office received an affidavit and reports from Lawrence police on Sept. 30 and an updated affidavit on Oct. 16. No attorney for De Sousa was listed in court records, and he could not be reached for comment. He is first scheduled to appear in court Dec. 17.
Lawrence police logs show a call around 2:30 a.m. on Jan. 1 for a battery in the Massachusetts Street bar and entertainment area.
Patrick Compton, a Lawrence police spokesperson, told The Star on Wednesday that a person approached a police officer at a local hospital claiming to have been involved in a fight outside of a bar at that location earlier that morning.
Kansas basketball coach Bill Self said Wednesday in a statement that the investigation was a factor in the announcement on Oct. 16 that De Sousa was leaving the team to focus on what was initially described as a “personal issues.”
“Earlier this fall, Silvio told me that he had been contacted by local authorities regarding his alleged involvement in an incident on New Year’s Eve,” Self said. “He was not aware of the details from that incident until a couple weeks ago, which he then shared with me.
“These allegations were surprising to Silvio, as they were to us. Once we discussed the details, he decided it was in his best interest to opt out and focus on this matter. We mutually agreed that was the best course of action.”