Former MLB standout Josh Hamilton was arrested Wednesday and charged with injuring a child.
Hamilton was booked and released in Tarrant County, Texas, on Wednesday afternoon, according to Tom Steele of the Dallas Morning News. The charge is a felony.
Hamilton’s ex-wife Katie had sought a protective order earlier in October on behalf of one of the couple’s children, according to family-court records. According to Jason Allen of CBS DFW, Hamilton was barred from having contact with one of his daughters, and that condition was ultimately expanded to blocking contact with any child under the age of 17.
Steele reports that the following incident allegedly took place on September 30:
"The girl told authorities that Hamilton became upset about something she said, then threw a full water bottle, hitting her in the chest, while cursing and yelling at her. He then pulled a chair out from under her feet and threw it at her, yanked her to the ground, the affidavit says.
"Hamilton then picked up the girl, threw her over his shoulder and carried her to her bedroom as she yelled that she was sorry, the document says. She said that he threw her onto her bed, used one hand to pin down her head and then started hitting her legs with his other hand.
"He later picked her up by her sweatshirt, causing it to rip, she said, and hit her on her back.
"According to the affidavit, after he stopped hitting the girl, he said: 'I hope you go in front of the [expletive] Judge and tell him what a terrible dad I am so I don’t have to see you anymore.'"
The former No. 1 pick struggled with drug and alcohol abuse during his MLB career. Though he was able to stay sober for significant periods of time as he played, his most recently reported relapse came in 2015. He last played in 2017 with the Texas Rangers. In August, he was inducted into the team’s Hall of Fame, where he admitted that he regretted leaving for the Los Angeles Angels.
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