09/18/2026
Virtually the same thing happened at Rockwall Heath in 2023.
"Mark Cousins, UIL eligibility and education director, told the committee that Dr. Steven Horwitz, a Rockwall trainer and chiropractor, had requested that the body consider require rhabdo training."
Yes, it was ME who asked that rhabdomyolysis be added to the UIL Safety Training Class for coaches.
https://www.dmagazine.com/sports/2023/04/rockwall-heath-uil-rhabdo/
on's in Grand SalineNorma D. Barrett - Coldwell Banker Anderson RealtorsGrand Saline SunSouthern Roots & Co. Wills Point Youth Sports AssociationGrand Saline Youth Foundation
What began as allegations over an extreme disciplinary workout at a Texas charter school has now become a criminal case.
A Tom Green County grand jury has indicted Kent Sherrill, the former athletic director at Texas Leadership Charter Academy in San Angelo, on eight felony charges — four counts of injury to a child and four counts of abandoning or endangering a child. Sherrill was arrested Tuesday night by the Texas Department of Public Safety and released Wednesday morning, according to county jail records.
The charges stem from a February workout that has already resulted in a lawsuit filed by 12 families.
According to that lawsuit, roughly 80 student-athletes were subjected to repeated pushups as punishment. Students estimated they performed between 300 and 420 pushups, allegedly without adequate water, rest or breaks. The lawsuit says the exercises continued over multiple days even as some students were experiencing significant pain.
The result, according to the lawsuit: 20 children were hospitalized, with many diagnosed with rhabdomyolysis — a serious breakdown of muscle tissue that can damage the kidneys and, in severe cases, other organs. Hospital personnel ultimately notified Child Protective Services and law enforcement.
Now prosecutors are alleging that Sherrill recklessly or through criminal negligence caused bodily injury by requiring children to repeatedly perform pushups and not allowing them to stop. Other counts allege the students were placed in imminent danger of death, bodily injury or physical or mental impairment.
The indictment involves injuries allegedly suffered by four students. Its cover sheet also identifies Stetson Emfinger, former head football coach Bradley Oh, Brandon Richardson and Emmanuel Serna as co-defendants. Reporting available so far does not establish that all four have been arrested or separately indicted.
Sherrill and Oh left the school after the incident. TLCA previously said it had reported the matter to the appropriate agencies and was cooperating with authorities.
The families’ civil lawsuit goes considerably further, accusing the school and its personnel of negligence, gross negligence and an institutional cover-up. Those remain allegations and have not been established in court.
But there is a significant difference between where this story stood in the spring and where it stands today:
A grand jury has now determined there is sufficient evidence for Sherrill to face eight felony charges.
