Former Helix (Calif.) Charter lHigh School football coach Anthony Larceval has been charged with misdemeanor battery in connection with a 2018 incident in which he allegedly punched one of his 15-year-old players during a practice.
As reported by NBC San Diego affiliate KNSD, Larceval was sentenced to 25 hours of community service for punching Joshua Meredith, who was a freshman in 2018, during a team practice.
Larceval was fired from the program shortly therafter, but the Meredith family still moved forward with a lawsuit against the coach, citing both the final actions between the two and what they described as pervasive bullying against the player.
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“Everybody he went for help to didn’t help him. It always went back to toughen up. There’s nothing we can do about bullies. We can try to get everyone together. We can talk about it,” Fran Meredith, Joshua’s father, told KNSD.
“A slap on the hand or whatever. That’s for a punch in my son’s face that affected his jaw and his teeth, his entire life. He’s still growing and he still has to have that on his shoulders.”
The aftermath of that incident led to disappointment when the sentence was handed down Thursday, with Larceval already more than 100 hours of community service in since the incident, thereby ending the court case on the spot. No more punishment, no more direct impact on Larceval’s life despite the apparent dental work and emotional issues he brought to Meredith.
While the criminal case against Larceval is over, the civil case against the coach and Helix High School continues on apace. Despite the eventual penalty in the recently concluded criminal case, there’s every chance that the Meredith family could recover a financial reward from the remaining suit as it continues.