Ex-Wake Forest coach avoids jail after ‘one-punch’ death of Florida tourist in NYC
By Tamar Lapin
New York Post
July 23, 2020
The former Wake Forest basketball coach whose knockout punch led to the death of a Florida tourist in Queens two years ago avoided jail time at his sentencing on Thursday.
Jamill Jones, 37, will serve three years of probation, perform 1,500 hours of community service and pay a fine of $1,000 in the August 2018 death of Boca Raton resident Sandor Szabo.
Jones had faced up to a year in prison after being found guilty in February of assault in the third degree.
Then an assistant to Danny Manning at the ACC basketball program, Jones had slugged Szabo in the head for drunkenly banging on his car in Long Island City.
Szabo — an online marketing exec who had earlier in the day attended his stepsister’s wedding — was looking for his ride-share vehicle when he knocked on Jones’ window, his family has said.
The former college hoops coach pursued Szabo and socked him once in the face.
Szabo, 35, fell and hit his head on the pavement, causing a skull fracture and other traumatic brain injuries. He died at the hospital three days later.
“This was a tragic incident that ended the life of a man and devastated his family, a violent run-in that should never have happened,” said Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz in a statement.
“Violence is never the answer to settling a dispute.”
Jones attended the sentencing hearing before Queens Criminal Court Judge Joanne Watters via Skype video link, surrounded by his relatives. He apologized to Szabo’s family.
“We’re very sorry to the Szabo family and happy with the judge’s sentence,” said one of his defense attorneys, Eric Renfroe. “[Jones is] a good person and we’re sure he’s going to continue to do good in his life.”
The victim’s mother, Donna Kent, and other family members also attended the hearing via video.
She ripped prosecutors’ decision to only charge Jones with third-degree assault, and the resulting sentence, as “inadequate and unfair for the crime of killing an individual.”
“Judge Watters had an opportunity to send a powerful message to society — but instead delivered a weak-willed message that repentance alone is enough to prevent justice,” Kent said in a statement.
She said the family is exploring options in the civil courts “to right this wrong.”
“[We] believe it will do what the criminal court was too afraid to do: punish Jamill C. Jones for taking the life of our beloved Sandor.”
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