A Texas dad was asked to stop cheering at his daughter’s softball game, and police say he swung a metal water bottle at a man’s face

A youth girls’ softball game in Fort Bend County, Texas, ended in a fight after a man’s cheering reportedly upset spectators supporting the opposing team. The Oct. 24 incident left two men with serious injuries and led to the arrest of a husband and wife. Police identified the couple as Kiarious Hall and Jazmine Hall.

According to court and police documents reviewed by Globe, the trouble started when Kiarious began cheering for his daughter’s team. Two men in the stands, who were supporting the opposing side, allegedly asked him to quiet down while their pitcher was preparing to throw. They reportedly felt his cheering was disrupting the game.

Kiarious refused, and an argument followed. When officers later questioned him, he said one of the men elbowed him in the chest. He claimed he tried not to escalate the situation, but things got worse when the second man allegedly grabbed him and poked him in the chest.

Video appeared to contradict the father’s account

Kiarious told police he felt threatened and punched the man in the face. He said the man fell, hit his head on the turf, and lost consciousness. Kiarious also described getting into a struggle with the other man, saying they ended up in nearby bushes before spectators stepped in.

A video recorded by a bystander appeared to show something different. The witness handed the footage to police, and it appeared to show Kiarious holding a heavy metal water bottle as the argument unfolded. The camera did not capture the alleged poke to his chest, but it did appear to show Kiarious swinging the bottle at the first man’s face. The man went down and appeared to lose consciousness.

Kiarious then turned toward the second man and swung the bottle at him, according to the footage. Jazmine also got involved, tackling the second man and sending them both into the bushes. The two continued struggling until other people at the game broke up the fight. Clashes between parents at youth events have drawn attention before, including one mom’s shock when another family wrote her 7-year-old a furious note.

The two men suffered significant injuries

An attorney for the first man said he suffered a fractured jaw and three brain bleeds after being struck with the water bottle. The second man needed seven stitches in his chin. He also suffered a broken hip in the tackle and sustained several cuts and bruises.

Police acknowledged in the arrest affidavit that some witnesses appeared to favor the two men who had confronted Kiarious. But investigators pointed to the video and physical evidence in identifying him as the primary aggressor. The couple was arrested and taken to the Fort Bend County Jail.

Kiarious faces two counts of assault causing bodily injury, and Jazmine faces one count of the same charge. Neither has been convicted, and the allegations have yet to be tested in court.