Penn State defensive end Abdul Carter charged with misdemeanor assault

Penn State defensive end Abdul Carter has been charged with misdemeanor assault following a physical altercation with a tow truck driver, according to multiple reports. He has a preliminary hearing scheduled for May 22.

A report from WJAC stated that Carter’s Dodge Challenger was parked outside the Aspen State College apartment complex without a permit just after midnight on March 16. When a driver arrived attempting to tow the vehicle, the alarm went off causing Carter to come outside.

Carter went back inside to get money to pay a drop free, but when he returned he questioned the driver about his authority to tow to make sure his car wasn’t being stolen. The driver informed him that the company he worked for, Halfmoon, had a contract to enforce parking violations at the complex.

The driver asked Carter to provide a name and address for the vehicle to be released, but Carter refused. The driver then began to resume the process of towing the car when Carter used his forearm to block him from getting back in his truck and told him he was going to call 911.

The driver then grabbed a metal bar from the truck and told Carter to back away. Carter complied and the man got into the truck, but then witness video shows Carter grabbing on to the driver’s waist and forcefully pulling him out of the car. He carried the driver out of the parking lot and into a grassy area and threw him on the ground.

Both men ran back to the truck before Carter grabbed the driver again and was “seen on video controlling the victim with one arm over the top of the victim’s shoulder while his other hand is holding his sweatshirt,” police wrote.

Carter eventually took the man to the ground again and held him down. Video showed that Carter eventually allowed the man to get back up but continually stopped his attempts to get back in the truck.

The driver went to the hospital for soreness the next day and an X-ray revealed he had non-displaced rib fracture.

It’s unclear what, if any, punishment lies ahead for Carter as Penn State declined to comment on the incident. He is set to enter his third season with the Nittany Lions after earning first team All-Big Ten honors this past year.

Carter is expected to be a leader on the defense after putting up 48 tackles (5.5 for loss), 4.5 sacks, an interception, a forced fumble and five pass breakups in 2023.