March 21, 2025 • 42 mins
The episode culminates in a robust exploration of the Kaelen Tucker incident, a case that has garnered significant media attention. I meticulously dissect the events surrounding the baton strike, questioning the motivations behind the actions of the involved parties. A critical lens is cast on the responses from the NAACP and the broader implications of race within the narrative.
David's personal insights, derived from past experiences in track and field, lend authenticity to the discourse, as they challenge prevailing narratives and advocate for accountability. The episode concludes with a call to action, urging listeners to reflect on the complexities of human behavior, the impact of societal pressures, and the necessity for compassion and understanding in the face of adversity.
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Episode Transcript
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(00:01):
You are seen.
You are worthy.
You are not alone.
The world loses one person tosuicide every 40 seconds.
Let's change the stats together.
We can say not suicide.
Not today.
Welcome to True Crime Authorsand Extraordinary People, the podcast
(00:26):
where we bring two passions together.
The show that gives newmeaning to the old adage truth is
stranger than fiction.
And reminding you that thereis an extraordinary person in all
of us.
Here is your host, David McClam.
What's going on, everybody?
And welcome to another episodeof True Crime Authors and Extraordinary
People.
(00:46):
Of course, I'm your man, David McClam.
If you guys haven't already,make sure you're following us on
all of our social media.
One link to a link tree willget you every place you need to go
pertaining to the show.
As you heard on your way in.
If you are somebody who isthinking about hurting yourself or
(01:07):
someone else, please leavethis episode and call 988-it-is a
suicide prevention hotline.
They can get you the help thatyou need.
There is nothing worth your life.
If no one else has told youthis today, let me be the first to
tell you.
I do care and I do need you tobe here.
(01:32):
Before we begin today'sepisode, I have one shout out and
I have something important totell you about why there has been
no episode about the last two weeks.
First, a shout out.
I want to say hi and thank youfor listening to brand new listener
Tammy.
I encountered her on my jobwhile she was looking for some information
(01:54):
on MacBooks and we had a nicediscussion around that and we got
to discuss that I was apodcaster and she has since listened
to my show.
So, Tammy, I want to say thankyou for tuning in.
I hope you like your stay here.
Any suggestions, please let meknow any cases you haven't heard
you'd like me to do or you'dlike me to elaborate on.
(02:15):
You can also let me know thatby the various ways that is in my
link tree.
But thank you for listening tothe show.
Also welcome to any newlisteners that is here.
I want to welcome you andthank you for tuning in.
I know all of you guys do havemany choices in this type of programming
and I'm glad that you guyshave chosen to be here.
(02:37):
All right, so why haven't youheard from me in two weeks?
I think I alluded to this, butif I didn't tell you, I apologize.
I was away from the end ofFebruary until around the 11th or
so in Arkansas and I just gotback earlier this week.
So we're getting back on ourgrind I got some incredible people
(02:57):
lined up to you that I bookedwhile I was away just to kind of
give you guys a little tasteof that.
There is a movie out therecalled the Sound of Freedom.
The Gentleman that is thesubject of that movie.
I will be interviewing him andwe're going to talk about how he
went from business intogetting into trying to solve the
(03:21):
problem of child trafficking.
So you want to tune in for that?
But I was in Arkansas.
I was there, my whole familywent, we went on vacation.
But one of the main reasons Iwent is because I was asked to speak
at a cold case symposium to abunch of law enforcement.
So I got to sit in a room withabout 45 different police officers
(03:44):
that came from 19 differentcounties across Arkansas.
And I got to tell them why itis important to allow us who are
podcasters, to be able to helpthem solve their cold cases.
And we went through variousthings of that I've been asked back.
So I would be doing the sametrip next year.
It'll just be a little bitdifferently because I'm going to
(04:06):
present to them the oldestcold case in the world, which I believe
will never be solved because Ibelieve that I know as well as some
other people know exactly whodid it.
That case I don't think I'vedone here yet, but I've done.
On a day with crime, I'mtrying to decide if I'm going to
reshoot that one or if I'mgoing to bring the David crime one
(04:26):
over.
But it is the Black Dahliacase, real name Elizabeth Short.
So I'm looking forward to that.
Bentonville, Arkansas peopleis incredible.
If you guys don't know this,it is the home of Walmart.
No matter what town you livein, if you don't live in Bentonville,
your Walmart look very poorcompared to the ones is in Bentonville.
(04:49):
I can throw a stone and hit aWalmart on every corner of that city.
We got to go to the PeelMansion which is incredible.
And yeah, just about everyWalmart I went to had their own gas
station like a Costco and theyhad drive through pharmacy.
Some of them was way acrossthe parking lot.
They had the little likethings we used to have when we went
(05:11):
through the drive thru and wewent had drive through banking the
little shoot.
So it was kind of cool.
So that's why I was gone.
As you guys do know with thecold case symposium case, people
is confused.
I do have another podcast ifyou guys were tuned in, I do link
them at the end of the show.
I believe, but extinguishmyself and my co host, Ladonna Humphrey,
(05:32):
we do nothing on that podcastbut tackle cold cases.
That's why I was called as tospeed because I do have a passion
for cold case in trying to getthem solved if we can.
So that's where I've been.
Now let's get into today's case.
I have to speak on this casebecause of what it is is all over
(05:55):
the news.
You guys have already heardthe case.
You probably heard 40 otherpeople talk about this case.
But I gotta talk about it.
And it is the Kayleen Tucker saga.
If you don't know who KayleenTucker is, Kayleen Tucker was a high
school track runner that washit in the head with a baton by Alayla
(06:20):
Efrit.
We gotta talk about thisbecause the fact that I used to be
a track runner, I ran track inhigh school.
And there's been some moredevelopments that's come because
of this.
So I'm going to give you my opinion.
I'm going to tell you why I'mashamed as being a black person because
now what a Layla effort isclaiming, and they're actually claiming
(06:43):
racism on this situation.
So let me just read you anarticle that goes that.
Let me give you my opinion,uh, the most complete one now that
I have found because thingsare changing because, I mean, there's
charges and all kinds of stuffyou hear about is going to be from
ABC News.
It was written by Meredith Deliso.
(07:03):
So we're going to read herarticle then I'm going to give you
my two cents on this and whatI think should happen.
So she titled her article,high School runner who hit opponent
in head with Baton facesassault and battery charges.
A high school track athletefaces misdemeanor charge of assault
(07:24):
and battery after a non viralvideo showed her hitting a competitor's
head with her baton during arelay event.
Alela Effort, a senior at I.C.
norcom High School inPortsmouth, was running the second
leg of the 4 by 200 meterrelay when her baton struck Kalyn
(07:44):
Tucker, a junior fromBrookville High School, in the head.
It happened March 4th duringthe Virginia State High School League
Championships at LibertyUniversity in Lynchburg.
Bethany Harrison, theCommonwealth's Attorney for the city
of Lynchburg, confirmed ABCNews on Wednesday that a misdemeanor
charge of assault and batterywas issued against effort in the
(08:07):
matter.
Additional details on the casewere not immediately available.
The video of the incidentshowed Tucker staggering and reaching
for her head after being hitbefore going off the track.
She dropped her baton and wasattended to by medical personnel
shortly after the incident.
She would later be diagnosedwith a concussion, she told ABC affiliate
(08:28):
WVEC in Hampton, Virginia.
Now I want to add my two centshere because as much as I'm sure
Meredith Deliso is a greatreporter, there's something she forgot
there that I think drives kindof home this point.
Now, Meredith says that shewould later find out, being young
(08:50):
Tucker here would later findout that she was diagnosed with a
concussion.
According to her mother, notonly was she diagnosed with a concussion,
but also a possible skull fracture.
I want that to seep in becauseshe was hit in the head by baton
and I'm going to tell youabout these things as I've ran with
(09:11):
them before.
Why I say and will say thatthis was a deliberate hit.
But I want to add in there.
Not only was she diagnosedwith a concussion, but she also was
diagnosed with a possibleskull fractured.
Now she goes on to say I wasso in disbelief, tucker told wvec.
I didn't know what happened.
Everett contended that batonstrike was an accident.
(09:34):
In an interview that airedTuesday on Good Morning America,
she said, I would never dothat on purpose, ever said that's
not in my character.
The 18 year old said thatduring the race her arm became stuck
and her baton inadvertentlystruck Tucker as they neared the
corner of the track.
(09:55):
Her arm was literally hittingthe baton until she got a little
ahead and my arm got stucklike this, she said while holding
a baton to emphasize the movement.
The Everett say they believetheir video shows that Tucker's proximity
to their daughter led to anadditional collision.
According to the family,Tucker was running too close to Everett
(10:18):
when she tried to cut ahead,which caused Everett to lose her
balance and the baton to makecontact with Tucker.
Following the incident, theathletic director at I.C.
norcom High School andEverett's father apologized to the
Tucker family and a phonecall, according to Tucker's parents.
The Virginia High SchoolLeague told ABC News on Monday that
(10:40):
it is reviewing the incident.
The VHSL membership has alwaysmade it a priority to provide student
athletes with a safeenvironment for competition, the
league said in a statement.
The Portsmouth NAACP said itis also reviewing the incident, as
well as racial slurs and deaththreats toward the Everett family.
(11:03):
We are committed collectivelyto ensuring that the criminal justice
system, which we feel is notwarranted in this situation is executed
fairly and based on dueprocess, the organization said in
the statement on Wednesday.
While calling forever to bevoid of any criminal proceedings,
from all accounts, she is anexceptional young leader and scholar
(11:25):
whose athletic talent has beenwell documented and recognized across
our state.
The Portsmouth NAACP said shehas carried herself with integrity
both on and off the field.
And any narrative thatadjudicates her guilty of any criminal
activity is a violation of herdue respect process.
Right.
(11:47):
Now, let's go through this andtell you my two cents.
I'm going to tell you that Iam not pleased and I certainly do
disagree with the NAACP inthis statement.
And I'm going to tell you whythat is in a little bit and what
they are attempting to do,which you should already pull that
out when they start talkingabout the justice system and due
(12:09):
process.
But first, let's go backthrough some of this and why I call
BS and say that this girl didthis on purpose.
Now, this is also beingcompared to the January 6, 1994 incident
involving Nancy Kerrigan whenshe was hit in the knee by Tanya
(12:30):
Harding.
That's how much they're goingback to.
This is saying that this islike that.
So let me tell you what I believe.
So, first of all, this childwas not hit once.
She was hit twice.
Now, I want to remind you thata Layla effort is saying this is
(12:52):
a total accident, but she hitthis girl in the back of the head
twice.
She's also made the statementthat she was losing her balance and
that the baton got stuckbehind Kayleen Tucker's back.
(13:12):
So as she was bringing thebaton up to bring it back around
to her side, she smacked herin the head.
But how does, how do you dothat twice, though?
But she's admitted that shehit her twice.
Here's where my expertisecomes in.
Just to let you guys know,yes, I did run track and field when
I was in high school.
Track and field was one of thethree sports that I played because
(13:34):
I used one sport to crosstrain for the other sport, being
that they were in opposite seasons.
So I ran cross country, Iplayed basketball, and I ran track
and field.
Well, I just so happen to be asprinter, which is exactly what these
two girls are.
I actually ran these samerelays they're running.
(13:58):
I ran the 1x4, the 2x4, andthe 4x4 and also won the one by 100.
I was a sprinter.
That's what these girls do.
Now, if you guys have everwatched video of a track beat, you
watch the Olympics, you watch,you know, college going up to Olympics,
then you know that each runnerhas their individual lanes and those
(14:21):
lanes are not so far apart.
And one interview I heard, Iguess he was the director of track
and field.
Or whatever he was, was tryingto say that Kayleen Tucker was at
fault because you have to be afull stride ahead before you attempt
to cut in to someone's lane.
But she wasn't trying to cutinto somebody's lane at this point.
(14:42):
And if you're watching therace, from what I'm seeing it, that's
exactly what happened.
She was almost a full strideahead of Everett before she was hit.
And rumors that went aroundthat, okay, the girl in front was
just going to take the race.
So basically, Tucker andEverett was fighting for second and
(15:03):
third place.
It looks like Tucker was goingto take second place before she was
struck twice in the head.
So it's also come out thatthey believe that Everett wanted
to be in second place.
She was gonna do it at all costs.
Smacked her twice in the backof the head and figured that she
could tell this way off storyabout how the baton got stuck behind
(15:25):
her opponent's back andeverybody would just leave her be.
A little bit more that I foundout about Kayleen Tucker is she had
tried to run track and field before.
Her mom said on Live Interviewthat she quit because she said there
was too much running involved.
Eventually she goes back to itand she ends up at this championship
(15:48):
race because it turns out thatKayleen Tucker is a heck of a runner
and she can make a career outof this.
She's been kicking people'sbehind out there and it looks like
a Layla Everett was going tobe next because she was going to
be reduced from second placeto third place.
So let me just kind of tellyou my two cents and why I think
that a Layla Everett did thison purpose.
(16:10):
I will post a video becausethere's video all over the place
at YouTube.
If you have not seen it and ifyou watch the video now, they're
trying to say that there'sdifferent angles and all of that
kind of stuff, even no matterwhat angle you look at at you should
come to this same conclusion.
And then I'm going to tell youwhat they're trying to do and why
(16:31):
I'm disappointed with naacp.
And this is exactly the reasonwhy when some black people say that
they have racism issues, thisis how come it's hard for us to get
those press, because sometimesour own people makes that hard.
But again, they're running the4 by 200 relay.
(16:53):
So if you aren't familiar withthe relays, 4 by 200, each person
runs 50 meters, which meansthere's a baton handoff.
The baton people, first ofall, is very light I want to repeat
that because this girl went tothe hospital, was told she had a
concussion and a possibleskull fracture if you've never held
(17:17):
one.
A baton that you use toexchange with a partner when you
are running a track relay isvery light.
They are so light that whenyou run a track meet, any windy state,
and is windy that day, thereis usually additional practice for
(17:38):
you to handle the wind.
Now, if you go to any trackmeet, you will already see that that
practice does happen, nomatter where, what the conditions
is.
The two runners, you know,first and second, third and fourth,
they may run up, they may try,you know, they practice their stride,
they practice them coming offthe blocks and they're reached behind
and so on and so forth, sothey can make sure they get that
baton squarely in hand.
(18:00):
Understand that there is somany meters that when you hand that
baton off, that baton has tobe handed off before you hit whatever
that predetermined meter is.
If you don't hand that batonoff and you start running behind
your opponent, you are disqualified.
So they are light, meant fortransition, can be dropped very easily.
(18:24):
So this is the first reason Icall BS that it was done on an accident.
Also, here's the second reason.
They were rounding the corner.
Now, if you watch the videowhere Everett is saying, oh, it got
stuck behind her back, let mekind of explain to you how that would
have to happen.
(18:45):
First of all, when you are atrack runner, you are running with
everything pretty muchperpendicular to each other.
Your right arm is right withyour right leg and so on and so forth.
Your arms are in front of youand your arms is pumping right.
So you have no time to bestretching things out because that
takes away from your speed asit is.
(19:06):
When you are rounding a cornerwith that baton, you kind of get
a little bit tighter becausenow you're trying to round that corner
as fast as possible, as looseas possible, without losing control
of yourself.
So you don't have time to beout stretching your arms.
You're trying to pass thisperson, so you're picking up speed
around that corner.
Again, your arms should bepumping directly in front of you
(19:31):
as you're going and you'rerounding that corner.
It's BS people, because she'ssaying that her.
She lost her balance and shewent to stumble.
If you're running at that highrate of speed and you go to stumble,
you're not going to stumbleinward to the right, you're not going
to stumble inward to the left,you're going to actually stumble
and Trip in front of youbecause of the speed.
(19:53):
And when you're running andyou're trying to go in a forward
direction, if you trip on arock or something else, you're going
to fall forward, not back, notleft, not right.
You're going to fall forward.
According to Alela Efrick, shewas getting bumped.
She said that she was alreadygetting bumped by Kayleen Tucker.
(20:15):
Now, Kayleen Tucker says thatshe had been getting hit by effort
the whole entire meet, thatshe was already running too close
at that point.
So for the whole meet,according to Kayleen Tucker, she
(20:36):
was getting hit.
Now, according to Laylaeffort, she says that she was getting
tapped the whole time aroundthe corner too, that eventually she
went to.
She went to lose her balanceand fell inside and had her arm in.
The baton was behind KayleenTucker's back.
(20:56):
And as she went to to pull thebaton up to bring it back over to
her side and regain herbalance, she hit Kayleen Tucker in
the head two times.
I want all to go watch the video.
I want you to see the stillsthat's there.
That is totally untrue.
(21:17):
Layla effort, from watchingthis video at different angles several
different times, never losther balance.
Matter of fact, if you watchthe video, there is proof of that
because she is still runningin a straight up and down line.
As you see the baton come incontact with Kayleen Tucker's head,
(21:42):
if you also look very close,it looks like that Kayleen Tucker
had already figured out thatif she could round the corner, she
was going to be that strideahead that she needed to be, and
then she was going to go aheadand take over.
Leila effort.
That's why she got hit in the head.
(22:04):
When you're running track,you're looking ahead between your
distance and the distance ofthe person that's in front of you
to see if you can cross that lane.
If you then look when she isrunning again, Layla effort, no loss
of balance, straight up and down.
The moment that she clubs herin the back of the head, Kaylie Tucker
(22:28):
goes down, she goes off to theside of track and she falls.
This is an accident, right?
By this time, I believe thatLayla effort already knew she lost
the race.
At this point, she could do nobetter than second place.
(22:49):
Now that Kayleen Tucker'staken out the picture.
Now, for me, I'm moreconcerned about my fellow athlete.
And if I would have donesomething like that on accident,
I would have felt very badwhen I saw them stumble.
And even if I didn't realize Idid it to Me, at that point in time,
even if I did get second placeor first place, whatever place I'm
(23:11):
gonna get in that race, I willforever feel like he was tainted
because of the fact that oneof my fellow athletes went down due
to something that I possiblycould have done.
So my first reaction is, I'mgoing to stop, put myself off the
track, too.
That means I actually forfeitthat race at that point because now
I'm just going to come in deadlast or it's going to go down as
(23:32):
a dnf.
Did not finish, because I'mgoing to go check on my fellow athlete
and say, are you okay?
What happened?
You know, anything I could doto help you.
None of that came from Layla Everett.
She kept running her race.
Now because of that hit, herschool was disqualified.
(23:54):
So even if she did come insecond place, it don't matter no
more because you smacksomebody in the back of the head.
So whoever the girl was thatwas closest to her in the back, that
came in third positionactually got second.
The girl in front was already gone.
Okay?
We already knew she waswinning the race.
She didn't even know anythingthat was going on behind her.
She was way out there.
He was folk.
She was focused on finishing,and that's what she did.
(24:16):
So the girl in first placedidn't know nothing except for she
saw the finish line and thatwas it.
But I see NORCOM gotdisqualified because of that hit.
Now they have Lila Everettgoing around doing what I call the
Apologize Tour with very fake tears.
And if people want to comeafter me, so so be it.
(24:39):
She's 18 years of age.
She is of sound mind and body.
She knows exactly what she did.
Her parents know what she did.
The videotape knows what she did.
So I'm not gonna pull nopunches on her.
She's going around with thistour now saying that she's sorry
and she's crying and thatnobody's thinking about her.
(24:59):
And what about the.
The nightmares that she's having?
Then you got the NAACP comingout talking about some, well, this
girl don't need, shouldn't becharged with a misdemeanor, and it's
gonna ruin her way of life.
And she has all thesescholarships signed up for college
and she's gonna miss out.
Then Layla Everest thoughtabout all of that before 9 second
(25:20):
video came out that showedthat she hit this girl in the back
of the head intentionally.
Now she says she did not.
She said she would never doanything like that.
She's still telling the storythat the Baton got stuck behind her
(25:40):
back, and that's how she gothit in the head.
Got people saying that theyknow 100% that she would never do
that to nobody.
How do we know that peopleknew 100% that Tanya Harding didn't
hit Nancy Kerrigan in the knee?
(26:00):
Then it comes out later onthat that's exactly what happened
because Tanya wanted that spot.
So anybody that put their lifeon the line and said, oh, I know
Tanya didn't do it, where youat right now?
She's still fighting thatbattle 30 plus years later.
I just seen a new documentarywith her come out last year.
(26:21):
That's what's going to be likefully effort.
She's never gonna live this down.
Now, I will say this I do notagree with, because it did say that
effort, who is black, says shehas endured a racial backlash since
the clip went viral and thatpeople are judging her off of one
angle from the video.
(26:43):
Let me kind of attack that asa black person, because I know exactly
what they're getting at.
First of all, my disclaimer.
I don't agree that anybody, nomatter what they've done, should
be racially harassed orharassed at any level.
But let me tell you where thatcomes from.
If a black people get mad atme, I'm sorry, but if y'all examine
yourself, you know what I'mabout to say is true.
(27:06):
What was the racial backlashthat she got?
I'll bet my life on it, thatthere wasn't no white person out
there calling her any racial names.
No, it was probably blackpeople using the words that we shouldn't
use anyway, starting with Nwhen it comes to each other.
They probably said, oh, I knowthis end didn't.
(27:26):
Or you a ghetto in.
These are probably things.
They said racial slurs was made.
Now, if this was a normal day,I'm just gonna be honest with you.
If this was a normal day,let's say that none of this Baton
stuff happened in the head.
And let's just say that LilaAlfred beat Kayleen Tucker that day.
(27:47):
And the minute that they do,oh, you my end.
What up, ambo?
You was the end on that track.
Now, nobody has a problem withthat version of it, right?
All of it's wrong.
We shouldn't be using thatword in any capacity, especially
being black toward each other.
It shouldn't be used in anycapacity from anybody else.
(28:08):
But I'm showing you what thedifferences would be.
Now we get the NAACP involved,and I'm ashamed of the naacp.
If you guys know what thosefive Letters be it means the national
association for theAdvancement of Colored People, NAACP
(28:30):
comes to the aid of when therereally is racism happening and when
there really is trials that wehave to go through, and when there
really is an African Americanor somebody else of another color
being treated wrong orindecent is for our advancement to
advance in this world as ablack person.
Where's the advancement here?
(28:52):
Because now the NYCP is comingout saying, oh my gosh, this is racial.
Let me read yours first.
We want to make it abundantlyclear that we denounce any type of
racial slur or threat in anyform towards anyone involved in the
situation, the organizationsaid in the statement.
The Portsmouth NAACP addedthat it believes involvement by the
criminal justice system inthis matter is not warranted in this
(29:14):
situation.
Man, that is such a double asssword and it ticked me off.
Let me tell you why that is.
Let me reread that to you again.
That it believes involvementby the criminal justice system in
this matter is not warrantedin this situation.
Because Kayleen Tucker'sparents went and said that they think
(29:35):
charges should be pressed onLala Effort for maliciously and purposely
attacking their daughter.
And apparently the authorities agreed.
But now they're saying, oh no,we at the NAACP don't think that
this is right.
We don't think at this timethere should be any criminal charges.
(29:59):
Reverse the roles.
Let's say it's Kayleen Tuckerand it's Becky Smith.
And Becky Smith just happenedto be white.
And Becky Smith did the exactsame thing that Layla Effort did.
Came up and smacked KayleenTucker in the back of the head two
(30:20):
times with the baton.
Man, no matter how many timesBecky said that this was an accident,
no matter how many times Beckytried to tell this same story that
Laila Effort is trying totell, no matter if she said she was
sorry from here to the GrandCanyon, the first thing NAACP and
(30:41):
some black people would havebeen yelling is it was on purpose
press a charge.
If this was Becky Smith whowas white and it was going around
that a Chargers press theNAACP and all these other black people
that's backing up Layla effortwould be like, yep, that's what needs
to happen.
We seen the video.
(31:02):
She clubbed her in the headtwo times.
There would be nobody that ison Layla effort side.
And believe me, there ispeople because they've held rallies
talking about that Laylaeffort is the victim and the NAACP
man, they would lead the charge.
But because both people areblack, that's supposed to mean something.
(31:25):
It's almost like they expectKayleen Tucker's parents to come
out and say, you know what?
Because this happened betweentwo black girls, we just gonna let
that be.
We're not gonna go ahead andpress any charges because we don't
want to do any more harmtowards our, you know, black people.
Skip all that.
(31:47):
And I.
I hate to say it, but that'sexactly how it is in with some black
people.
Some white people, I'm sure, too.
But it's more with us becausewe sometimes think that we should
get some type of car thatpasses because we are the same skin
tone.
No, if you did somethingwrong, you gotta pay for it.
Now Layla Everett's cryingabout her scholarship she may not
(32:11):
get, and she can't go to college.
What if Kayleen Tucker isdamaged for life?
What if she comes up with sometype of neurological issue because
she got hit in the head twicewith a metal baton?
Remember, I told you thesethings are light.
They're light metal.
To do that kind of damage tosomebody, you have to be wielding
(32:34):
that thing like a hammer.
And if you look at the anglesthat I have seen, when she hits in
the back of the head, that'sexactly what Layla effort did.
She wound up way in the backand brought that mug forward and
coming back to the head.
So what about Kayleen?
What about her life?
What if she can't run trackanymore because she suffered some
(32:57):
debilitating headaches and migraines?
I live with a person in myhouse that suffers from these migraines.
I know what it's like when mywife comes down with one and she's
put on her back for three daysbecause her head hurts that bad.
But nobody's saying that.
(33:18):
There was a rally, like Isaid, that was held for a lot of
effort, and they're cheering.
We stand with we.
And I hope I'm saying her name right.
I don't know if it's Lila.
Layla.
But they're saying, we.
We stand with Layla.
We stand.
We stand with her.
She's the victim.
She didn't do this.
She would never do this.
She claims that she's tried tosay she was sorry to Kayleen Tucker,
(33:40):
but it's impossible becauseshe's been blocked.
I'll probably block you, too.
It's supposed to be anaccident, but she never once came
over and checked on her.
She never once stopped andsaid, are you okay?
She never once reached out tothe parents or.
No one, not even her parentscame running up to Kayleen Tucker's
(34:01):
parents and say, man, we're sorry.
Anything we can do?
Here's my phone number.
You know, let me know what happened.
None of that.
The girl didn't even say shewas sorry until this 9 second clip
went viral and every newsorganization in the world picked
it up.
Now we got to do damage control.
Damage is already done, people.
I am disappointed in Laylaeffort as an athlete and I am saying
(34:29):
her name wrong.
I think it's a Layla effort asan athlete because now in this day
and age, we have thismentality where we feel like that
if we are not better thansomeone else, we have to cheat to
win.
This is a blatant attempt totake out her opponent because she
wanted to win.
Even if it was second place inthis race.
Instead of making yourselfbetter or training harder or asking
(34:56):
for help from your coaches,you decide to just take somebody
out.
I can't condone that as ahuman and definitely not as an athlete.
I'm disappointed in NAACPbecause they're using resources that
some black person, Asianperson or whoever they're going to
(35:20):
help could be using to back upa girl who by all costs, on the video
you can see that sheintentionally smacked this girl in
the back of the head.
Now you're trying to use thejustice system for the NAACP's favor.
(35:40):
I would say this loud and proud.
If people get upset, I'msorry, but it's the truth.
The justice system has neverbeen in the corner of anyone who's
black in the first place.
We've preached this from thebeginning of time.
We've also done documentariesand there's books that's been written
about how the American justicesystem is always skewed to pretty
(36:02):
much screw the black citizen.
However, the NAACP is callingon the same justice system when there
is a crime that has truly beencommitted to take back the charge
of the misdemeanor and statethat it's not warranted in this situation.
(36:26):
You have to listen to how theyput it.
They didn't say warranted inthis case.
They didn't say warranted inthis incident.
They didn't say warranted inthis supposed crime.
They said warranted in this situation.
Which if you are like me andyou read between the lines, then
(36:47):
exactly what I just gave youlaid out for you using Becky Smith
is exactly what they're saying.
If this situation would havebeen different and if the person
that hit Kayleen Tucker wouldhave been white, then the NAACP of
Virginia would be backing upKayleen Tucker right now and would
(37:09):
be calling for the justicesystem to issue some type of a charge
and I will stand on my gravewith that.
I know that's exactly what happened.
I've seen.
I can't remember his name, butI've seen the guy over the NAACP
in Virginia talk about it andhow this shouldn't be and the family
should drop it and the whole nine.
(37:31):
Very upsetting to me.
To Kayleen Tucker, I hope thatyou recover well.
I hope that you do know thatthere is some people that really
do know the truth of whatthey're seeing, that everybody is
not fooled.
And you do have a lot ofpeople that is behind you and on
(37:53):
your side when it comes to aLayla effort.
I hope that you decide to cometo grips what you have done and tell
the truth.
I don't think that the NAACPis going to win this one for you.
I do think that you will befound guilty and charged with a misdemeanor,
even if it means you have togo to a court case to do so if you're
not going to admit to theguilt yourself.
(38:14):
But no matter what angle youlook at this from, from people that's
done this before, that's ranrelays, that's been on track, I'm
not the only one.
I mean, there's professionaltrack stars that saying, yeah, this
was done intentionally.
Every news outlet that I'vewatched, somebody's independent,
at least that can give theirown opinion and said the same thing
(38:36):
is done intentionally.
If you really watch thisvideo, you will see also that it's
done intentionally.
Now, I hope that Elena Tucker,I hope you do not get stripped of
any scholarships in which you have.
It's most likely because thisis what colleges do.
If you become some type of atroubled person, whether you're on
their campus or not, they willusually just pull scholarships, especially
(38:59):
if you're going on track andfield now, because now people has
to be able to trust the factthat they want you on their track
and field team and that youwon't do these kind of things that
will get them disqualified.
So in that light, you may havekind of screwed yourself, but I hope
that you do learn a lessonfrom this and is able to recover
from this.
(39:20):
But we have to acceptresponsibility for the things in
which we have done.
Ladson NAACP as anorganization, you should be ashamed
of yourself.
I think you guys know for afact that this girl did do this.
I don't know why you'redefending her to the hill that you
are.
And now you're asking forcharges to be removed.
(39:41):
But.
But you should understand thatwhat I said is true.
That if this was Becky Smithand she, Becky happened to be white,
you would be calling for sometype of charge.
First of all, you as NAACPshouldn't be involved in this in
any case because it's not aracial case, it's not an injustice
case, it's not a civil rights case.
This is a criminal case.
(40:03):
Somebody maliciously,willfully and in broad daylight hit
somebody else in the headtwice at any fashion, in any outlet,
any state, any event, nomatter where you go, that's assault
and battery.
It's a misdemeanor, in somecases a felony.
(40:23):
So I hope you have notdisgraced the NAACP's name.
And black people that's behindthis saying that this is exactly
what should happen should beshaming themselves because we all
know again, the outcome if theshoe was on the other foot.
All right, everybody, thankyou for joining me for this episode.
That does it for this one.
(40:45):
I appreciate all you guyssticking with me.
We are back now to fullcapacity, full days, usually Thursday,
Fridays when we're going to bedropping here.
Make sure you check out Extinguish.
We've got some good cold casesover there if you want to listen
to those, help us solve them.
Maybe you're in the area.
Got a lot of things coming up there.
Again, a lot of great guestscoming up here.
(41:06):
True Crime all the storypeople I just told you, just one
that is on his way.
All right.
Once again, thank you forjoining us today.
I know you have many choicesin True Crime and interview podcast
and I am grateful for nowalmost three years you guys have
chosen me.
Remember that you have beenlistening to the only three faceted
(41:29):
podcast of its kind.
Be good to yourself and each other.
And always remember, alwaysstay humbled.
An act of kindness can makesomeone's day.
A little love and compassioncan go a long way.
And remember that there is anextraordinary person in all of us.
I'll catch you guys on thenext one.
(41:54):
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Authors and extraordinary people.
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Welcome to True Crime Authorsand Extraordinary People, the podcast
(00:26):
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Here is your host, David McClam.
What's going on, everybody?
And welcome to another episodeof True Crime Authors and Extraordinary
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(00:46):
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There is nothing worth your life.
If no one else has told youthis today, let me be the first to
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I do care and I do need you tobe here.
(01:32):
Before we begin today'sepisode, I have one shout out and
I have something important totell you about why there has been
no episode about the last two weeks.
First, a shout out.
I want to say hi and thank youfor listening to brand new listener
Tammy.
I encountered her on my jobwhile she was looking for some information
(01:54):
on MacBooks and we had a nicediscussion around that and we got
to discuss that I was apodcaster and she has since listened
to my show.
So, Tammy, I want to say thankyou for tuning in.
I hope you like your stay here.
Any suggestions, please let meknow any cases you haven't heard
you'd like me to do or you'dlike me to elaborate on.
(02:15):
You can also let me know thatby the various ways that is in my
link tree.
But thank you for listening tothe show.
Also welcome to any newlisteners that is here.
I want to welcome you andthank you for tuning in.
I know all of you guys do havemany choices in this type of programming
and I'm glad that you guyshave chosen to be here.
(02:37):
All right, so why haven't youheard from me in two weeks?
I think I alluded to this, butif I didn't tell you, I apologize.
I was away from the end ofFebruary until around the 11th or
so in Arkansas and I just gotback earlier this week.
So we're getting back on ourgrind I got some incredible people
(02:57):
lined up to you that I bookedwhile I was away just to kind of
give you guys a little tasteof that.
There is a movie out therecalled the Sound of Freedom.
The Gentleman that is thesubject of that movie.
I will be interviewing him andwe're going to talk about how he
went from business intogetting into trying to solve the
(03:21):
problem of child trafficking.
So you want to tune in for that?
But I was in Arkansas.
I was there, my whole familywent, we went on vacation.
But one of the main reasons Iwent is because I was asked to speak
at a cold case symposium to abunch of law enforcement.
So I got to sit in a room withabout 45 different police officers
(03:44):
that came from 19 differentcounties across Arkansas.
And I got to tell them why itis important to allow us who are
podcasters, to be able to helpthem solve their cold cases.
And we went through variousthings of that I've been asked back.
So I would be doing the sametrip next year.
It'll just be a little bitdifferently because I'm going to
(04:06):
present to them the oldestcold case in the world, which I believe
will never be solved because Ibelieve that I know as well as some
other people know exactly whodid it.
That case I don't think I'vedone here yet, but I've done.
On a day with crime, I'mtrying to decide if I'm going to
reshoot that one or if I'mgoing to bring the David crime one
(04:26):
over.
But it is the Black Dahliacase, real name Elizabeth Short.
So I'm looking forward to that.
Bentonville, Arkansas peopleis incredible.
If you guys don't know this,it is the home of Walmart.
No matter what town you livein, if you don't live in Bentonville,
your Walmart look very poorcompared to the ones is in Bentonville.
(04:49):
I can throw a stone and hit aWalmart on every corner of that city.
We got to go to the PeelMansion which is incredible.
And yeah, just about everyWalmart I went to had their own gas
station like a Costco and theyhad drive through pharmacy.
Some of them was way acrossthe parking lot.
They had the little likethings we used to have when we went
(05:11):
through the drive thru and wewent had drive through banking the
little shoot.
So it was kind of cool.
So that's why I was gone.
As you guys do know with thecold case symposium case, people
is confused.
I do have another podcast ifyou guys were tuned in, I do link
them at the end of the show.
I believe, but extinguishmyself and my co host, Ladonna Humphrey,
(05:32):
we do nothing on that podcastbut tackle cold cases.
That's why I was called as tospeed because I do have a passion
for cold case in trying to getthem solved if we can.
So that's where I've been.
Now let's get into today's case.
I have to speak on this casebecause of what it is is all over
(05:55):
the news.
You guys have already heardthe case.
You probably heard 40 otherpeople talk about this case.
But I gotta talk about it.
And it is the Kayleen Tucker saga.
If you don't know who KayleenTucker is, Kayleen Tucker was a high
school track runner that washit in the head with a baton by Alayla
(06:20):
Efrit.
We gotta talk about thisbecause the fact that I used to be
a track runner, I ran track inhigh school.
And there's been some moredevelopments that's come because
of this.
So I'm going to give you my opinion.
I'm going to tell you why I'mashamed as being a black person because
now what a Layla effort isclaiming, and they're actually claiming
(06:43):
racism on this situation.
So let me just read you anarticle that goes that.
Let me give you my opinion,uh, the most complete one now that
I have found because thingsare changing because, I mean, there's
charges and all kinds of stuffyou hear about is going to be from
ABC News.
It was written by Meredith Deliso.
(07:03):
So we're going to read herarticle then I'm going to give you
my two cents on this and whatI think should happen.
So she titled her article,high School runner who hit opponent
in head with Baton facesassault and battery charges.
A high school track athletefaces misdemeanor charge of assault
(07:24):
and battery after a non viralvideo showed her hitting a competitor's
head with her baton during arelay event.
Alela Effort, a senior at I.C.
norcom High School inPortsmouth, was running the second
leg of the 4 by 200 meterrelay when her baton struck Kalyn
(07:44):
Tucker, a junior fromBrookville High School, in the head.
It happened March 4th duringthe Virginia State High School League
Championships at LibertyUniversity in Lynchburg.
Bethany Harrison, theCommonwealth's Attorney for the city
of Lynchburg, confirmed ABCNews on Wednesday that a misdemeanor
charge of assault and batterywas issued against effort in the
(08:07):
matter.
Additional details on the casewere not immediately available.
The video of the incidentshowed Tucker staggering and reaching
for her head after being hitbefore going off the track.
She dropped her baton and wasattended to by medical personnel
shortly after the incident.
She would later be diagnosedwith a concussion, she told ABC affiliate
(08:28):
WVEC in Hampton, Virginia.
Now I want to add my two centshere because as much as I'm sure
Meredith Deliso is a greatreporter, there's something she forgot
there that I think drives kindof home this point.
Now, Meredith says that shewould later find out, being young
(08:50):
Tucker here would later findout that she was diagnosed with a
concussion.
According to her mother, notonly was she diagnosed with a concussion,
but also a possible skull fracture.
I want that to seep in becauseshe was hit in the head by baton
and I'm going to tell youabout these things as I've ran with
(09:11):
them before.
Why I say and will say thatthis was a deliberate hit.
But I want to add in there.
Not only was she diagnosedwith a concussion, but she also was
diagnosed with a possibleskull fractured.
Now she goes on to say I wasso in disbelief, tucker told wvec.
I didn't know what happened.
Everett contended that batonstrike was an accident.
(09:34):
In an interview that airedTuesday on Good Morning America,
she said, I would never dothat on purpose, ever said that's
not in my character.
The 18 year old said thatduring the race her arm became stuck
and her baton inadvertentlystruck Tucker as they neared the
corner of the track.
(09:55):
Her arm was literally hittingthe baton until she got a little
ahead and my arm got stucklike this, she said while holding
a baton to emphasize the movement.
The Everett say they believetheir video shows that Tucker's proximity
to their daughter led to anadditional collision.
According to the family,Tucker was running too close to Everett
(10:18):
when she tried to cut ahead,which caused Everett to lose her
balance and the baton to makecontact with Tucker.
Following the incident, theathletic director at I.C.
norcom High School andEverett's father apologized to the
Tucker family and a phonecall, according to Tucker's parents.
The Virginia High SchoolLeague told ABC News on Monday that
(10:40):
it is reviewing the incident.
The VHSL membership has alwaysmade it a priority to provide student
athletes with a safeenvironment for competition, the
league said in a statement.
The Portsmouth NAACP said itis also reviewing the incident, as
well as racial slurs and deaththreats toward the Everett family.
(11:03):
We are committed collectivelyto ensuring that the criminal justice
system, which we feel is notwarranted in this situation is executed
fairly and based on dueprocess, the organization said in
the statement on Wednesday.
While calling forever to bevoid of any criminal proceedings,
from all accounts, she is anexceptional young leader and scholar
(11:25):
whose athletic talent has beenwell documented and recognized across
our state.
The Portsmouth NAACP said shehas carried herself with integrity
both on and off the field.
And any narrative thatadjudicates her guilty of any criminal
activity is a violation of herdue respect process.
Right.
(11:47):
Now, let's go through this andtell you my two cents.
I'm going to tell you that Iam not pleased and I certainly do
disagree with the NAACP inthis statement.
And I'm going to tell you whythat is in a little bit and what
they are attempting to do,which you should already pull that
out when they start talkingabout the justice system and due
(12:09):
process.
But first, let's go backthrough some of this and why I call
BS and say that this girl didthis on purpose.
Now, this is also beingcompared to the January 6, 1994 incident
involving Nancy Kerrigan whenshe was hit in the knee by Tanya
(12:30):
Harding.
That's how much they're goingback to.
This is saying that this islike that.
So let me tell you what I believe.
So, first of all, this childwas not hit once.
She was hit twice.
Now, I want to remind you thata Layla effort is saying this is
(12:52):
a total accident, but she hitthis girl in the back of the head
twice.
She's also made the statementthat she was losing her balance and
that the baton got stuckbehind Kayleen Tucker's back.
(13:12):
So as she was bringing thebaton up to bring it back around
to her side, she smacked herin the head.
But how does, how do you dothat twice, though?
But she's admitted that shehit her twice.
Here's where my expertisecomes in.
Just to let you guys know,yes, I did run track and field when
I was in high school.
Track and field was one of thethree sports that I played because
(13:34):
I used one sport to crosstrain for the other sport, being
that they were in opposite seasons.
So I ran cross country, Iplayed basketball, and I ran track
and field.
Well, I just so happen to be asprinter, which is exactly what these
two girls are.
I actually ran these samerelays they're running.
(13:58):
I ran the 1x4, the 2x4, andthe 4x4 and also won the one by 100.
I was a sprinter.
That's what these girls do.
Now, if you guys have everwatched video of a track beat, you
watch the Olympics, you watch,you know, college going up to Olympics,
then you know that each runnerhas their individual lanes and those
(14:21):
lanes are not so far apart.
And one interview I heard, Iguess he was the director of track
and field.
Or whatever he was, was tryingto say that Kayleen Tucker was at
fault because you have to be afull stride ahead before you attempt
to cut in to someone's lane.
But she wasn't trying to cutinto somebody's lane at this point.
(14:42):
And if you're watching therace, from what I'm seeing it, that's
exactly what happened.
She was almost a full strideahead of Everett before she was hit.
And rumors that went aroundthat, okay, the girl in front was
just going to take the race.
So basically, Tucker andEverett was fighting for second and
(15:03):
third place.
It looks like Tucker was goingto take second place before she was
struck twice in the head.
So it's also come out thatthey believe that Everett wanted
to be in second place.
She was gonna do it at all costs.
Smacked her twice in the backof the head and figured that she
could tell this way off storyabout how the baton got stuck behind
(15:25):
her opponent's back andeverybody would just leave her be.
A little bit more that I foundout about Kayleen Tucker is she had
tried to run track and field before.
Her mom said on Live Interviewthat she quit because she said there
was too much running involved.
Eventually she goes back to itand she ends up at this championship
(15:48):
race because it turns out thatKayleen Tucker is a heck of a runner
and she can make a career outof this.
She's been kicking people'sbehind out there and it looks like
a Layla Everett was going tobe next because she was going to
be reduced from second placeto third place.
So let me just kind of tellyou my two cents and why I think
that a Layla Everett did thison purpose.
(16:10):
I will post a video becausethere's video all over the place
at YouTube.
If you have not seen it and ifyou watch the video now, they're
trying to say that there'sdifferent angles and all of that
kind of stuff, even no matterwhat angle you look at at you should
come to this same conclusion.
And then I'm going to tell youwhat they're trying to do and why
(16:31):
I'm disappointed with naacp.
And this is exactly the reasonwhy when some black people say that
they have racism issues, thisis how come it's hard for us to get
those press, because sometimesour own people makes that hard.
But again, they're running the4 by 200 relay.
(16:53):
So if you aren't familiar withthe relays, 4 by 200, each person
runs 50 meters, which meansthere's a baton handoff.
The baton people, first ofall, is very light I want to repeat
that because this girl went tothe hospital, was told she had a
concussion and a possibleskull fracture if you've never held
(17:17):
one.
A baton that you use toexchange with a partner when you
are running a track relay isvery light.
They are so light that whenyou run a track meet, any windy state,
and is windy that day, thereis usually additional practice for
(17:38):
you to handle the wind.
Now, if you go to any trackmeet, you will already see that that
practice does happen, nomatter where, what the conditions
is.
The two runners, you know,first and second, third and fourth,
they may run up, they may try,you know, they practice their stride,
they practice them coming offthe blocks and they're reached behind
and so on and so forth, sothey can make sure they get that
baton squarely in hand.
(18:00):
Understand that there is somany meters that when you hand that
baton off, that baton has tobe handed off before you hit whatever
that predetermined meter is.
If you don't hand that batonoff and you start running behind
your opponent, you are disqualified.
So they are light, meant fortransition, can be dropped very easily.
(18:24):
So this is the first reason Icall BS that it was done on an accident.
Also, here's the second reason.
They were rounding the corner.
Now, if you watch the videowhere Everett is saying, oh, it got
stuck behind her back, let mekind of explain to you how that would
have to happen.
(18:45):
First of all, when you are atrack runner, you are running with
everything pretty muchperpendicular to each other.
Your right arm is right withyour right leg and so on and so forth.
Your arms are in front of youand your arms is pumping right.
So you have no time to bestretching things out because that
takes away from your speed asit is.
(19:06):
When you are rounding a cornerwith that baton, you kind of get
a little bit tighter becausenow you're trying to round that corner
as fast as possible, as looseas possible, without losing control
of yourself.
So you don't have time to beout stretching your arms.
You're trying to pass thisperson, so you're picking up speed
around that corner.
Again, your arms should bepumping directly in front of you
(19:31):
as you're going and you'rerounding that corner.
It's BS people, because she'ssaying that her.
She lost her balance and shewent to stumble.
If you're running at that highrate of speed and you go to stumble,
you're not going to stumbleinward to the right, you're not going
to stumble inward to the left,you're going to actually stumble
and Trip in front of youbecause of the speed.
(19:53):
And when you're running andyou're trying to go in a forward
direction, if you trip on arock or something else, you're going
to fall forward, not back, notleft, not right.
You're going to fall forward.
According to Alela Efrick, shewas getting bumped.
She said that she was alreadygetting bumped by Kayleen Tucker.
(20:15):
Now, Kayleen Tucker says thatshe had been getting hit by effort
the whole entire meet, thatshe was already running too close
at that point.
So for the whole meet,according to Kayleen Tucker, she
(20:36):
was getting hit.
Now, according to Laylaeffort, she says that she was getting
tapped the whole time aroundthe corner too, that eventually she
went to.
She went to lose her balanceand fell inside and had her arm in.
The baton was behind KayleenTucker's back.
(20:56):
And as she went to to pull thebaton up to bring it back over to
her side and regain herbalance, she hit Kayleen Tucker in
the head two times.
I want all to go watch the video.
I want you to see the stillsthat's there.
That is totally untrue.
(21:17):
Layla effort, from watchingthis video at different angles several
different times, never losther balance.
Matter of fact, if you watchthe video, there is proof of that
because she is still runningin a straight up and down line.
As you see the baton come incontact with Kayleen Tucker's head,
(21:42):
if you also look very close,it looks like that Kayleen Tucker
had already figured out thatif she could round the corner, she
was going to be that strideahead that she needed to be, and
then she was going to go aheadand take over.
Leila effort.
That's why she got hit in the head.
(22:04):
When you're running track,you're looking ahead between your
distance and the distance ofthe person that's in front of you
to see if you can cross that lane.
If you then look when she isrunning again, Layla effort, no loss
of balance, straight up and down.
The moment that she clubs herin the back of the head, Kaylie Tucker
(22:28):
goes down, she goes off to theside of track and she falls.
This is an accident, right?
By this time, I believe thatLayla effort already knew she lost
the race.
At this point, she could do nobetter than second place.
(22:49):
Now that Kayleen Tucker'staken out the picture.
Now, for me, I'm moreconcerned about my fellow athlete.
And if I would have donesomething like that on accident,
I would have felt very badwhen I saw them stumble.
And even if I didn't realize Idid it to Me, at that point in time,
even if I did get second placeor first place, whatever place I'm
(23:11):
gonna get in that race, I willforever feel like he was tainted
because of the fact that oneof my fellow athletes went down due
to something that I possiblycould have done.
So my first reaction is, I'mgoing to stop, put myself off the
track, too.
That means I actually forfeitthat race at that point because now
I'm just going to come in deadlast or it's going to go down as
(23:32):
a dnf.
Did not finish, because I'mgoing to go check on my fellow athlete
and say, are you okay?
What happened?
You know, anything I could doto help you.
None of that came from Layla Everett.
She kept running her race.
Now because of that hit, herschool was disqualified.
(23:54):
So even if she did come insecond place, it don't matter no
more because you smacksomebody in the back of the head.
So whoever the girl was thatwas closest to her in the back, that
came in third positionactually got second.
The girl in front was already gone.
Okay?
We already knew she waswinning the race.
She didn't even know anythingthat was going on behind her.
She was way out there.
He was folk.
She was focused on finishing,and that's what she did.
(24:16):
So the girl in first placedidn't know nothing except for she
saw the finish line and thatwas it.
But I see NORCOM gotdisqualified because of that hit.
Now they have Lila Everettgoing around doing what I call the
Apologize Tour with very fake tears.
And if people want to comeafter me, so so be it.
(24:39):
She's 18 years of age.
She is of sound mind and body.
She knows exactly what she did.
Her parents know what she did.
The videotape knows what she did.
So I'm not gonna pull nopunches on her.
She's going around with thistour now saying that she's sorry
and she's crying and thatnobody's thinking about her.
(24:59):
And what about the.
The nightmares that she's having?
Then you got the NAACP comingout talking about some, well, this
girl don't need, shouldn't becharged with a misdemeanor, and it's
gonna ruin her way of life.
And she has all thesescholarships signed up for college
and she's gonna miss out.
Then Layla Everest thoughtabout all of that before 9 second
(25:20):
video came out that showedthat she hit this girl in the back
of the head intentionally.
Now she says she did not.
She said she would never doanything like that.
She's still telling the storythat the Baton got stuck behind her
(25:40):
back, and that's how she gothit in the head.
Got people saying that theyknow 100% that she would never do
that to nobody.
How do we know that peopleknew 100% that Tanya Harding didn't
hit Nancy Kerrigan in the knee?
(26:00):
Then it comes out later onthat that's exactly what happened
because Tanya wanted that spot.
So anybody that put their lifeon the line and said, oh, I know
Tanya didn't do it, where youat right now?
She's still fighting thatbattle 30 plus years later.
I just seen a new documentarywith her come out last year.
(26:21):
That's what's going to be likefully effort.
She's never gonna live this down.
Now, I will say this I do notagree with, because it did say that
effort, who is black, says shehas endured a racial backlash since
the clip went viral and thatpeople are judging her off of one
angle from the video.
(26:43):
Let me kind of attack that asa black person, because I know exactly
what they're getting at.
First of all, my disclaimer.
I don't agree that anybody, nomatter what they've done, should
be racially harassed orharassed at any level.
But let me tell you where thatcomes from.
If a black people get mad atme, I'm sorry, but if y'all examine
yourself, you know what I'mabout to say is true.
(27:06):
What was the racial backlashthat she got?
I'll bet my life on it, thatthere wasn't no white person out
there calling her any racial names.
No, it was probably blackpeople using the words that we shouldn't
use anyway, starting with Nwhen it comes to each other.
They probably said, oh, I knowthis end didn't.
(27:26):
Or you a ghetto in.
These are probably things.
They said racial slurs was made.
Now, if this was a normal day,I'm just gonna be honest with you.
If this was a normal day,let's say that none of this Baton
stuff happened in the head.
And let's just say that LilaAlfred beat Kayleen Tucker that day.
(27:47):
And the minute that they do,oh, you my end.
What up, ambo?
You was the end on that track.
Now, nobody has a problem withthat version of it, right?
All of it's wrong.
We shouldn't be using thatword in any capacity, especially
being black toward each other.
It shouldn't be used in anycapacity from anybody else.
(28:08):
But I'm showing you what thedifferences would be.
Now we get the NAACP involved,and I'm ashamed of the naacp.
If you guys know what thosefive Letters be it means the national
association for theAdvancement of Colored People, NAACP
(28:30):
comes to the aid of when therereally is racism happening and when
there really is trials that wehave to go through, and when there
really is an African Americanor somebody else of another color
being treated wrong orindecent is for our advancement to
advance in this world as ablack person.
Where's the advancement here?
(28:52):
Because now the NYCP is comingout saying, oh my gosh, this is racial.
Let me read yours first.
We want to make it abundantlyclear that we denounce any type of
racial slur or threat in anyform towards anyone involved in the
situation, the organizationsaid in the statement.
The Portsmouth NAACP addedthat it believes involvement by the
criminal justice system inthis matter is not warranted in this
(29:14):
situation.
Man, that is such a double asssword and it ticked me off.
Let me tell you why that is.
Let me reread that to you again.
That it believes involvementby the criminal justice system in
this matter is not warrantedin this situation.
Because Kayleen Tucker'sparents went and said that they think
(29:35):
charges should be pressed onLala Effort for maliciously and purposely
attacking their daughter.
And apparently the authorities agreed.
But now they're saying, oh no,we at the NAACP don't think that
this is right.
We don't think at this timethere should be any criminal charges.
(29:59):
Reverse the roles.
Let's say it's Kayleen Tuckerand it's Becky Smith.
And Becky Smith just happenedto be white.
And Becky Smith did the exactsame thing that Layla Effort did.
Came up and smacked KayleenTucker in the back of the head two
(30:20):
times with the baton.
Man, no matter how many timesBecky said that this was an accident,
no matter how many times Beckytried to tell this same story that
Laila Effort is trying totell, no matter if she said she was
sorry from here to the GrandCanyon, the first thing NAACP and
(30:41):
some black people would havebeen yelling is it was on purpose
press a charge.
If this was Becky Smith whowas white and it was going around
that a Chargers press theNAACP and all these other black people
that's backing up Layla effortwould be like, yep, that's what needs
to happen.
We seen the video.
(31:02):
She clubbed her in the headtwo times.
There would be nobody that ison Layla effort side.
And believe me, there ispeople because they've held rallies
talking about that Laylaeffort is the victim and the NAACP
man, they would lead the charge.
But because both people areblack, that's supposed to mean something.
(31:25):
It's almost like they expectKayleen Tucker's parents to come
out and say, you know what?
Because this happened betweentwo black girls, we just gonna let
that be.
We're not gonna go ahead andpress any charges because we don't
want to do any more harmtowards our, you know, black people.
Skip all that.
(31:47):
And I.
I hate to say it, but that'sexactly how it is in with some black
people.
Some white people, I'm sure, too.
But it's more with us becausewe sometimes think that we should
get some type of car thatpasses because we are the same skin
tone.
No, if you did somethingwrong, you gotta pay for it.
Now Layla Everett's cryingabout her scholarship she may not
(32:11):
get, and she can't go to college.
What if Kayleen Tucker isdamaged for life?
What if she comes up with sometype of neurological issue because
she got hit in the head twicewith a metal baton?
Remember, I told you thesethings are light.
They're light metal.
To do that kind of damage tosomebody, you have to be wielding
(32:34):
that thing like a hammer.
And if you look at the anglesthat I have seen, when she hits in
the back of the head, that'sexactly what Layla effort did.
She wound up way in the backand brought that mug forward and
coming back to the head.
So what about Kayleen?
What about her life?
What if she can't run trackanymore because she suffered some
(32:57):
debilitating headaches and migraines?
I live with a person in myhouse that suffers from these migraines.
I know what it's like when mywife comes down with one and she's
put on her back for three daysbecause her head hurts that bad.
But nobody's saying that.
(33:18):
There was a rally, like Isaid, that was held for a lot of
effort, and they're cheering.
We stand with we.
And I hope I'm saying her name right.
I don't know if it's Lila.
Layla.
But they're saying, we.
We stand with Layla.
We stand.
We stand with her.
She's the victim.
She didn't do this.
She would never do this.
She claims that she's tried tosay she was sorry to Kayleen Tucker,
(33:40):
but it's impossible becauseshe's been blocked.
I'll probably block you, too.
It's supposed to be anaccident, but she never once came
over and checked on her.
She never once stopped andsaid, are you okay?
She never once reached out tothe parents or.
No one, not even her parentscame running up to Kayleen Tucker's
(34:01):
parents and say, man, we're sorry.
Anything we can do?
Here's my phone number.
You know, let me know what happened.
None of that.
The girl didn't even say shewas sorry until this 9 second clip
went viral and every newsorganization in the world picked
it up.
Now we got to do damage control.
Damage is already done, people.
I am disappointed in Laylaeffort as an athlete and I am saying
(34:29):
her name wrong.
I think it's a Layla effort asan athlete because now in this day
and age, we have thismentality where we feel like that
if we are not better thansomeone else, we have to cheat to
win.
This is a blatant attempt totake out her opponent because she
wanted to win.
Even if it was second place inthis race.
Instead of making yourselfbetter or training harder or asking
(34:56):
for help from your coaches,you decide to just take somebody
out.
I can't condone that as ahuman and definitely not as an athlete.
I'm disappointed in NAACPbecause they're using resources that
some black person, Asianperson or whoever they're going to
(35:20):
help could be using to back upa girl who by all costs, on the video
you can see that sheintentionally smacked this girl in
the back of the head.
Now you're trying to use thejustice system for the NAACP's favor.
(35:40):
I would say this loud and proud.
If people get upset, I'msorry, but it's the truth.
The justice system has neverbeen in the corner of anyone who's
black in the first place.
We've preached this from thebeginning of time.
We've also done documentariesand there's books that's been written
about how the American justicesystem is always skewed to pretty
(36:02):
much screw the black citizen.
However, the NAACP is callingon the same justice system when there
is a crime that has truly beencommitted to take back the charge
of the misdemeanor and statethat it's not warranted in this situation.
(36:26):
You have to listen to how theyput it.
They didn't say warranted inthis case.
They didn't say warranted inthis incident.
They didn't say warranted inthis supposed crime.
They said warranted in this situation.
Which if you are like me andyou read between the lines, then
(36:47):
exactly what I just gave youlaid out for you using Becky Smith
is exactly what they're saying.
If this situation would havebeen different and if the person
that hit Kayleen Tucker wouldhave been white, then the NAACP of
Virginia would be backing upKayleen Tucker right now and would
(37:09):
be calling for the justicesystem to issue some type of a charge
and I will stand on my gravewith that.
I know that's exactly what happened.
I've seen.
I can't remember his name, butI've seen the guy over the NAACP
in Virginia talk about it andhow this shouldn't be and the family
should drop it and the whole nine.
(37:31):
Very upsetting to me.
To Kayleen Tucker, I hope thatyou recover well.
I hope that you do know thatthere is some people that really
do know the truth of whatthey're seeing, that everybody is
not fooled.
And you do have a lot ofpeople that is behind you and on
(37:53):
your side when it comes to aLayla effort.
I hope that you decide to cometo grips what you have done and tell
the truth.
I don't think that the NAACPis going to win this one for you.
I do think that you will befound guilty and charged with a misdemeanor,
even if it means you have togo to a court case to do so if you're
not going to admit to theguilt yourself.
(38:14):
But no matter what angle youlook at this from, from people that's
done this before, that's ranrelays, that's been on track, I'm
not the only one.
I mean, there's professionaltrack stars that saying, yeah, this
was done intentionally.
Every news outlet that I'vewatched, somebody's independent,
at least that can give theirown opinion and said the same thing
(38:36):
is done intentionally.
If you really watch thisvideo, you will see also that it's
done intentionally.
Now, I hope that Elena Tucker,I hope you do not get stripped of
any scholarships in which you have.
It's most likely because thisis what colleges do.
If you become some type of atroubled person, whether you're on
their campus or not, they willusually just pull scholarships, especially
(38:59):
if you're going on track andfield now, because now people has
to be able to trust the factthat they want you on their track
and field team and that youwon't do these kind of things that
will get them disqualified.
So in that light, you may havekind of screwed yourself, but I hope
that you do learn a lessonfrom this and is able to recover
from this.
(39:20):
But we have to acceptresponsibility for the things in
which we have done.
Ladson NAACP as anorganization, you should be ashamed
of yourself.
I think you guys know for afact that this girl did do this.
I don't know why you'redefending her to the hill that you
are.
And now you're asking forcharges to be removed.
(39:41):
But.
But you should understand thatwhat I said is true.
That if this was Becky Smithand she, Becky happened to be white,
you would be calling for sometype of charge.
First of all, you as NAACPshouldn't be involved in this in
any case because it's not aracial case, it's not an injustice
case, it's not a civil rights case.
This is a criminal case.
(40:03):
Somebody maliciously,willfully and in broad daylight hit
somebody else in the headtwice at any fashion, in any outlet,
any state, any event, nomatter where you go, that's assault
and battery.
It's a misdemeanor, in somecases a felony.
(40:23):
So I hope you have notdisgraced the NAACP's name.
And black people that's behindthis saying that this is exactly
what should happen should beshaming themselves because we all
know again, the outcome if theshoe was on the other foot.
All right, everybody, thankyou for joining me for this episode.
That does it for this one.
(40:45):
I appreciate all you guyssticking with me.
We are back now to fullcapacity, full days, usually Thursday,
Fridays when we're going to bedropping here.
Make sure you check out Extinguish.
We've got some good cold casesover there if you want to listen
to those, help us solve them.
Maybe you're in the area.
Got a lot of things coming up there.
Again, a lot of great guestscoming up here.
(41:06):
True Crime all the storypeople I just told you, just one
that is on his way.
All right.
Once again, thank you forjoining us today.
I know you have many choicesin True Crime and interview podcast
and I am grateful for nowalmost three years you guys have
chosen me.
Remember that you have beenlistening to the only three faceted
(41:29):
podcast of its kind.
Be good to yourself and each other.
And always remember, alwaysstay humbled.
An act of kindness can makesomeone's day.
A little love and compassioncan go a long way.
And remember that there is anextraordinary person in all of us.
I'll catch you guys on thenext one.
(41:54):
Don't forget to rate, commentand subscribe.
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