Policing Of Cage Fighters Is Lax

Police knew Sherman Maggard liked to fight, so it was a good bet the man indicted on a felony firearms charge would be at the April 5 cage fight at the University of Virginia’s College at Wise.

Officers arrested the 41-year-old Maggard without incident at the event, after he won his fight and was interviewed by a college sportswriter covering the event.

"I’m always looking for a fight," Maggard told the Highland Cavalier. "I just wanted to beat the crap out of [his opponent]."

Mixed martial arts events at the amateur level are not regulated by Virginia authorities, and it is unclear to what degree informal sanctioning bodies conduct background checks on fighters.

Following inquiries by the Herald Courier, officials at UVa-Wise have ruled out hosting future fights, and the Lee County Public Schools’ chief is reconsidering whether to host an upcoming fight on May 10.

In a telephone interview Friday, Lee County Superintendent Fred Marion said he was unaware that the state was not reviewing the criminal history of participants in the cage fights held at Lee High School.

"I didn’t know that," Marion said. "That is a concern, now that you’ve mentioned it."

He said he would rethink whether to host Cage Kombat IV – the fourth mixed martial arts event at the school since last June – after consulting with area principals.

A phone call to the promoter, Last Man Standing Promotions, was not returned on Friday.

The relationship between the state and the informal organizations that sanction amateur fights is often unclear to those who host combat events, said a state official who tracks amateur fights.

"The public doesn’t understand what they are accepting," said David Holland, who oversees Virginia’s Professional Boxing, Wrestling and Martial Arts Program.

The head of Ground N Pound – the organization that sanctioned both the UVa-Wise event and the coming Cage Kombat – told the Herald Courier he was "approved by the state of Virginia."

For David Probst, who also maintains a mixed-martial arts Web site, state approval literally means having the confidence of Holland, with whom he has built up credibility over the years.

"I have spoken in depth with [Probst], and I am totally convinced he is there for the good of martial arts," Holland said. "He doesn’t want bad things to happen that could cause martial arts to become illegal."

Saying he is approved by the state, however, "is misapplying his status with us," Holland said.

Probst’s work consists of making sure a fight promoter abides by an extensive set of guidelines, ranging from the medical personnel that must be on the scene to what moves are permitted in a fight.

A copy of rules he provided states that "all fighters are required to submit a complete background check," and that "fighters may not train under the influence of any illegal drug, or legal drug used illegally."

Probst acknowledged in a telephone interview that "I don’t do that extensive of a background check," and he does not require drug screens for fighters.

In fact, the state does little more to regulate professional events.

Holland said he does not conduct any drug screens, or independently review fighters’ criminal records; relying on what fighters disclose on their applications before a fight.

"If someone has a criminal record for shoplifting or auto theft, we’re not going to pay much attention," he said. "If we took those fellows out of boxing, there would be no boxing."

Probst contends that the fights he sanctions are safe – more children die every year in school sports, he points out, adding "people who work within the sport do everything they can do insure the safety of the fighters."

The fight held at UVa-Wise yielded a few minor injuries, and one fighter was taken to the hospital after collapsing post-bout.

Citing a previous Herald Courier article’s description of the injuries, one member of Probst’s Web site posted the comment, "I call that, and I quote . . . . ‘A good night!’ LOL! [laugh out loud]"

"What did they expect EXACTLY???? It’s fighting," another member chimed in.

Kevin Yates, a Wise County police investigator who has attended several amateur fights, said event-goers "are very orderly," ranging in age from 10 to 70 years old. The only illegal activity he’s encountered came at a fight in Big Stone Gap, Va., a few months back, where he sat in plain clothes with two other officers and the commonwealth’s attorney for the county.

"A guy in front of us pulled out a pill, crushed it and snorted it," Yates recalled. "We started blackberrying the deputies at the event, and they came over and arrested him."

Maggard, a construction worker and Wise, Va., resident, is well known to town police, who have dealt with him since he was a juvenile, said Chief Tony Bates.

Wise County authorities allege that Maggard broke into a local mobile home in January and stole a firearm. He has a previous felony conviction for burglary in 1988, and was indicted for felony possession of a firearm in March.

But Maggard, who is out of jail on bond, has no plans to curtail his fighting. In a telephone interview Friday, he said he planned to fight at Lee High School on May 10 – two days after the deadline to file a plea in his case.

"It’ll be dropped," Maggard said of the felony charge. "Because I didn’t do it."

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