Student faces felony charge for school fight

A locker room fight left one Superior High School student facing a felony charge of child abuse — because the victim was less than age 18.

Stephen John Robert Cannon, 17, is accused of slapping, snapping a towel at and ultimately punching a fellow student after gym class Feb. 23. The victim testified today in Douglas County Court that the altercation left him spitting blood for five minutes. He said he went to a hospital emergency room, where he was given ice for his eye and had his mouth checked to determine the source of bleeding.

According to the 16-year-old’s testimony, Cannon slapped him on the buttocks with an open hand twice although he was asked to stop. Cannon then began snapping a towel at him. The younger boy again asked him to stop, then pushed him away when he didn’t.

“I pushed him and he went against the wall,” the boy said.

The students, who are both adult-sized, called each other names, and Cannon slapped the 16-year-old in the head twice. The younger boy testified he kicked Cannon away “to get him off me.” That’s when he was punched in the face.

“He was trying to get me to fight,” the boy testified today. By not doing so, he said, he ended up “making him madder.”

Cannon told Superior Police Officer Kirk Babic that he mistakenly hit the 16-year-old in the face with the back of his hand while attempting to snap a towel at him.

Leslie Dollen, who represents Cannon, opposed the felony charge.

“This is a locker room fight between two high school boys,” she told Court Commissioner Paul Baxter. “Both boys were physical; both boys called each other names.”

Baxter, however, found probable cause to bind the case over for arraignment on March 28.

This is the second incident this school year that has led to charges for Cannon. The teen is accused of choking another student following the SHS Homecoming parade on Sept. 28. The victim in that incident lost consciousness and fell to the concrete sidewalk, according to the criminal complaint. He suffered a head laceration, and his vision was affected. Cannon faces substantial battery and child abuse charges for that incident. That case is set for a motion hearing Monday.

Tags: student, fight, child, abuse, locker, room, douglas, county, gym, class