SC deputy charged after viral confrontation with Lee Academy baseball player

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) - A South Carolina sheriff’s deputy is now facing charges after a confrontation between himself and a high school baseball player that was caught on video.

The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division said 64-year-old George Edwin Page, a deputy with the Marion County Sheriff’s Office, was charged Thursday with a count of third-degree assault.

SLED also charged 44-year-old Kathryn Atkinson, of Bishopville, with breach of peace in connection with the incident.

Both charges come as a result of a March 25 incident in Marion County after a baseball game between Pee Dee Academy and Lee Academy.

Documents later obtained by WIS state the mother of a Lee Academy player wanted to speak after the game about a call they made. The deputy, Page, reportedly went to tell her that she could not interact with the umpire.

An affidavit released by SLED on Thursday states the woman, later identified as Atkinson, disobeyed a “lawful order” from Page to leave school property.

That altercation led to the arrest of 24-year-old Austin Bowers, who Page said ran up to him and began “yelling profanities” before he was detained.

Page then reported that a juvenile, a 17-year-old Lee Academy baseball player, ran up to him cursing and “reared his fist back” as if he was going to strike him, but ultimately didn’t.

Footage then shows the teen stepping on Page’s foot with a cleat on while the deputy attempts to detain him. Page is then seen hitting the teen in the side of the head with a Taser before getting him to the ground.

According to documents, Atkinson allegedly tried to physically put herself between the deputy and the teen during the arrest.

Page and Atkinson were each charged Thursday and booked at the Marion County Detention Center, according to SLED.

Bowers was with disorderly conduct and booked at the Marion County Detention Center on the night of the incident. He has since been released on bond.

The 17-year-old, meanwhile, was charged through the South Carolina Department of Juvenile Justice. His exact counts were never specified, but Page’s warrants note that he was trying to arrest the teen for disorderly conduct.

The Marion County Sheriff’s Office later requested that SLED investigate, saying in a letter that there were “several complaints” brought to its attention about Page’s actions.

Lee Academy provided a statement after the video began circulating, saying it was aware of the footage but could not comment further due to the investigation.

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