Charges filed against man accused of injuring BYU cheer coach
Dec 19, 2024, 4:42 PM | Updated: 6:43 pm
SALT LAKE CITY — Charges have been filed against a man who is accused of injuring a BYU cheerleading coach after the team beat the University of Utah in November.
William Gardner, age 18, was charged with aggravated assault, a 3rd degree felony.
Gardner reportedly threw a water bottle from the suite-level of Rice Eccles Stadium into the sidelines near the south endzone after the game on Nov. 9. According to police documents, the bottle hit Jocyelyn Allan in the head and knocked her unconscious.
A witness told police she saw the bottle hit Allan on the side of her head. The witness said she saw Allan’s eyes roll back in her head after she was struck with the bottle.
A BYU police officer told police that he tried to render aid to Allan, but that she was “unresponsive to verbal or pain stimuli.” Allan was reportedly unconscious for up to 15 seconds when a paramedic arrived.
Two days later, police said Allan was diagnosed with a concussion. She will reportedly need therapy for as many as six weeks.
Police documents indicate that surveillance video shows Gardner in a suite at Rice Eccles Stadium, throwing the water bottle in Allan’s direction, on Nov. 9.
Later, Andrew Gardner, the suspect’s father, called police to report his son. The suspect reportedly told police he was at the BYU vs. Utah football game, that he was in a suite, and that he threw a water bottle in the direction of cheerleaders after he saw other people doing the same.
He reportedly admitted he threw the bottle because he was upset at the outcome of the game. BYU beat Utah 22-21.
University of Utah police arrested Gardner on Tuesday, Nov. 12.
