Father gets 13 years for shooting youth football coach over son’s playing time

Shaquille Latimore, second from right, sits with two players on the youth football league he assistant coaches at a park in south St. Louis on Thursday, Oct. 19, 2023. (Allie Schallert/St. Louis Post-Dispatch via AP)

Shaquille Latimore, second from right, sits with two players on the youth football league he assistant coaches at a park in south St. Louis on Thursday, Oct. 19, 2023. (Allie Schallert/St. Louis Post-Dispatch via AP)
 
Share

ST. LOUIS (AP) — A father in Missouri was sentenced to 13 years in prison on Thursday for shooting and wounding a St. Louis youth football coach over his son’s playing time while 9- and 10-year-olds practiced nearby.

Updated - Test BSP-2636

What to know about the 2024 Election

  • Democracy: American democracy has overcome big stress tests since the 2020 election. More challenges lie ahead in 2024.
  • AP’s Role: The Associated Press is the most trusted source of information on election night, with a history of accuracy dating to 1848. Learn more.
  • Read the latest: Follow AP’s complete coverage of this year’s election.

A jury found Daryl Clemmons, 45, guilty last month of assault and armed criminal action in the October 2023 shooting of Shaquille Latimore, a volunteer coach for the City Rec Legends Football League. He was hospitalized in critical condition but survived.

Both men were armed. According to prosecutors, the coach handed his gun to a friend and told Clemmons they should fight with fists. Clemmons rejected that idea and shot Latimore five times. The father fled but turned himself in to police later that evening.

The team was then suspended over what St. Louis officials described as “a series of incidents perpetuated by adults” that culminated in the shooting near a practice field in Sherman Park. Latimore said at the time that he was upset about the decision, calling it “not fair” that the team should suffer.

The defense argued that the shooting was in self defense and filed a motion for a new trial.

Parse.ly - related stories
This photo provided by UC Irvine Athletics shows UC Irvine's Will Bermudez, a redshirt senior, hitting during a baseball game against Tulane, on Feb. 19, 2023, in Irvine, Calif. (Matt Brown/UC Irvine Athletics via AP)
CalHOPE Courage Award winners Bermudez, Wang overcame physical and mental health challenges
 
American businesswoman Michele Kang, owner of Olympique Lyonnais, on the tribune to watch the women's Champions League semifinals, first leg, soccer match between Arsenal FC and Olympique Lyonnais at the Arsenal Stadium, in London, April 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth, File)
Lyon women’s team set for a new name and higher attendances under ambitious owner Kang
 
Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay, left, and general manager Les Snead answer questions at a press conference at Fire Station 114/Air Operations watch during the NFL football draft Thursday, April 24, 2025, in the Van Nuys section of Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Wally Skalij)
LA Rams announce plans to hold their June minicamp in Maui
 

St. Louis Circuit Attorney’s Office said the two men were at odds over the amount of playing time Clemmons’s son had been getting.

“Violence, especially in youth sports, is completely unacceptable and undermines the purpose of these programs — teaching teamwork, discipline, and respect,” said Circuit Attorney Gabe Gore in a news release after the jury returned the guilty verdict.

After the shooting, the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis partnered with the city to offer counseling to the players and others who witnessed the shooting.