Killings to be arraigned Monday in Kentucky on assault charge
RICHMOND, K.Y. (NEWS10) -- UAlbany men's basketball head coach Dwayne Killings is set to be arraigned on an assault charge on Monday in Kentucky.
Killings will be arraigned on a charge of fourth degree assault with no visible injury, a Class A misdemeanor at 9:00 AM at Madison County District Court in Kentucky. The news was first reported by the Daily Gazette.
The charge stems from the same locker room incident that led to a five game suspension and a $25,000 fine for Killings. The school's investigation found Killings made inappropriate contact with a student athlete in a pre-game hype circle.
The incident has also resulted in a lawsuit filed by the former player, Luke Fizulich, against Killings, UAlbany Athletic Director Mark Benson, and the university. The incident took place on November 24th, 2021 prior to a game against Eastern Illinois in Richmond, Kentucky.
The University at Albany released a statement Friday night through a spokesman, which can be found below.
The University is aware of the complaint recently filed in Kentucky. The University’s understanding is that the underlying allegation is substantively the same information reported to the University in February 2022, which triggered UAlbany’s personnel investigation and resulted in Coach Killings serving a five-game suspension and paying a $25,000 fine last year. At this time, the University is not aware of any additional information that would result in a change in Coach Killings’ status. Should additional information become available, the University will respond appropriately.
Fizulich's lawyer, Stuart Bernstein, provided News10 with the following statement.
We are pleased that the State of Kentucky is taking action to hold Coach Killings criminally accountable for viciously and publicly assaulting a student athlete in their state. The assault itself is not in question, as Coach Killings has admitted it. This is inexcusable conduct for a Division I college coach and SUNY Albany, to our knowledge, was correctly intending to terminate Coach Killings for the physical assault of a student athlete—until it appears community pressure made them reverse their initial decision. All parties need to be held responsible for the harm they have inflicted on Mr. Fizulich.
The UAlbany men's basketball team next plays on Wednesday at New Hampshire.