Two members of the football team surrendered to police Monday night on assault charges following a January altercation with another Temple student. 6ABC initially reported the arrests late Monday night.
A Philadelphia Police spokesperson told The Temple News in a phone conversation that junior offensive lineman Dion Dawkins and redshirt-junior Haason Reddick were ordered to turn themselves into the police department’s East Detectives division and were charged following an altercation around 1:30 a.m. on Sunday, Jan. 18 at an off-campus party at Club 1800 on N. 5th Street in Philadelphia’s Northern Liberties section.
An email from Philadelphia Police stated that the victim, a 21-year-old Temple senior, attended the party and witnessed Dawkins and Reddick assaulting his friend, also a 21-year-old male. Per the email, the victim said he attempted to pull his friend away, but was kicked in the right eye and held back by people at the party, including Dawkins. The victim said he and Dawkins began to fight when several other people intervened and began hitting him, the email stated.
The victim suffered a broken orbital bone and, according to the 6ABC report, a concussion, following the incident. He initially went to Wills Eye Hospital for treatment, and was later transferred to Jefferson Hospital for his injuries.
A Philadelphia Police spokesperson told The Temple News Tuesday that the victim reported the incident to police on Monday, January 19, and that a warrant seeking the arrest of both Dawkins and Reddick was issued March 10. The spokesperson also said that the victim and the accused knew each other prior to the incident.
The 20-year-old student-athletes will await a preliminary hearing on March 31 and, according to court documents released Tuesday morning, have been charged with aggravated assault, conspiracy and related charges. They were both released after posting 10 percent of $10,000 bail.
Dawkins and Reddick have been suspended by the team, according to a Temple spokesperson, and are awaiting arraignment after acquiring lawyers, per the 6ABC report. Court documents did not include attorneys for either student-athlete, as of Tuesday morning.
Dawkins, a 6-foot-5, 315-pound left tackle, played in 11 games for the Owls last fall as a starter. Reddick, a 6-foot-1, 225-pound defensive lineman, started twice and played in nine games, registering 25 tackles.
As of Tuesday morning, both players are still listed on the team’s roster.
The 6ABC report stated that the injured student has medically withdrawn from the university, but plans to resume classes in the fall semester.
In light of the incident, Temple issued the following statement on Monday night:
“Temple University is aware of allegations of improper conduct by two of its student-athletes at an off-campus location in January. The university has, and will continue, to fully cooperate with the Philadelphia Police Department in its investigation and will take appropriate actions outlined in the Student Conduct Code. The two students have been suspended from football team activities pending further investigation.”
EJ Smith and Andrew Parent can be reached at sports@temple-news.com or at 215.204.9537.
CORRECTION: A previous version of this story stated that Dawkins and Reddick have been suspended by the university. The players have actually been suspended by the team, not the school. This story has been updated to reflect the correction.
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