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Washington State defensive lineman T.J. Fehoko, a former Cottonwood High School football standout, was arrested Friday morning in Pullman, Wash., in connection with a fight at a July party.
Fehoko, 19, and fellow lineman Robert Barber were booked on second-degree assault charges and released from jail, Pullman police Chief Gary Jenkins said during a news conference Friday afternoon. Police will forward the case next week to prosecutors who will decide whether to file criminal charges.
According to police, Fehoko and Barber were at a large party in the eastern Washington college town early on the morning of July 23, when someone threw a firework into a crowd of people and a fight broke out. At least three people were injured in the fight. Fehoko is accused of punching a 22-year-old student who then fell to the ground where he was struck by others at the party. The student suffered a broken jaw.
In addition to Fehoko and Barber, police are recommending charges be filed against two other people.
"Incidents such as the one we are discussing today require student-athletes to step away from situations that show signs of trouble," WSU athletic director Bill Moos said at the press conference.
After a spate of arrests involving football players, Washington State head coach Mike Leach this week accused police and media of unfairly targeting athletes.
"How in the world can only football parties be guilty in events depicted like this?" the Spokesman-Review in Spokane, Wash., quoted Leach as saying. "It is irresponsible to this town, this community and everybody to have some kind of a double standard where we only focus on one demographic, one group of people and then drag their name through the newspaper with a bunch of irresponsible comments."
On Friday, however, Moos said he did not believe that to be true.
Fehoko was a three-star recruit out of Cottonwood High School, where in 2013 he recorded a state-record 34 sacks in a season. He redshirted last season as a freshman at Washington State.
Twitter: @aaronfalk