UPPER ARLINGTON, Ohio — Olympic gymnastics champion Paul Hamm has been accused of hitting and kicking a taxi driver, damaging a cab window and refusing to pay a $23 fare.
Hamm, 28, can be heard on an Upper Arlington police video telling an officer he’d had about eight drinks, WBNS-TV in Columbus, Ohio, reported. As Hamm sat handcuffed in the back of a cruiser, he asked officers to let him go and said: “I don’t understand. I’m gonna kill you guys.”
Hamm, the only American with a men’s world title and an Olympics all-around title, is charged with assault and two other misdemeanors. He was charged Saturday in suburban Columbus and is free on bond awaiting a Sept. 15 arraignment, according to records.
He now works as an assistant coach at Ohio State, which said it was aware of the arrest and would determine how to handle the matter after it is dealt with in court.
WBNS said a police report shows Hamm had fallen asleep as he was being driven home in the taxi. The taxi driver said Hamm had unintentionally locked the door and was trying to get out through the window. He said Hamm swore at him and elbowed him in the mouth as he tried to help him open the window.
The Associated Press
