4 Teens Charged With Sexually Assaulting Juvenile At Wrestling Camp

Four Georgia teen wrestlers, including one from Lawrenceville, were in the Floyd County Jail on Tuesday, charged with participating in the sexual assault of a juvenile at a wrestling camp.

The accused teens, all 17 years old and prominent in high school wrestling circles, had hoped to get out on bond but it could be months before a bond hearing is set by a Superior Court judge, according to jail spokeswoman Corporal Tiffany Wood.

In the meantime, Robert Darshawn Sharp, Jamel Marshawn Sharp and Kenny Thomson Mason, all from Valdosta in south Georgia, and Dallas Kendrick Brown of Lawrenceville will remain in the North Georgia lockup accused of assaulting the juvenile at Shorter University in Rome on Friday.

The four were charged with aggravated sexual battery. The charges carry sentences of 10 to 20  years in prison. Three are accused of holding the victim down while a fourth suspect assaulted the victim.

All four also are charged with simple battery, a misdemeanor that carries a sentence of no more than a year in prison.

The AJC does not identify victims of alleged sexual assaults.

Floyd Detective Jeff Richerson said Tuesday the victim was a juvenile participating in the wrestling camp, and he was younger than the accused teens.

Richerson said it appeared the suspects and the victim were acquainted with one another and may have been horse playing at the time.

“At some point it got out of hand and crossed the line into a criminal act,” Richerson said.

A police report said a coach at the wrestling camp overheard some of the youths talking about what had happened, and he went to the victim and alleged offenders to ask about the incident, which occurred between 10:10 and 10:24 p.m. Friday on campus.

The juvenile victim stated that the youths were playing around at first when Mason held him down while others hit him. “Another group came in and two boys held his feet and pulled down his pants” while someone tried to assault him with a toothbrush, the report said.

The detective said the wrestling coach alerted campus police. Rome police were then notified. Richerson said the juvenile was taken to a local hospital for examination.

Dallas Brown is a member of the Mountain View High School wrestling team. According to the Gwinnett Daily Post, he was Mountain View’s first state placer last year when he finished third in Class AAA. and he advanced to the 119-pound state finals. He competed for Lowndes during 2008-09 year.

According to the ValdostaToday.com, Jamel Marshawn Sharp, who attends Valdosta High School, won the 112-pound Class AAAAA state championship in May, finishing his senior year 52-1 and undefeated in the state. Robert Darshawn Sharp, also a Valdosta High School student, finished third in the 103-pound class. Their school team finished third overall.

Kenny Mason has a 5-4 record  at Lowndes High School, according to the school’s website. He and the Sharp brothers are members of the SGAC Devil Dogs, a non-profit USA Wrestling Affiliated club in Valdosta.

Shorter spokeswoman Aimee Madden said the camp was hosted by Team Georgia, the state affiliate of USA Wrestling. The camp was a four-day event, and this was the second year Team Georgia held it at Shorter.

Madden said Shorter was not involved in this matter other than leasing the facilities, including dormitory space.