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Viral cell phone incident involving Jason Kelce: Penn State Police are investigating

by November 5, 2024

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Penn State University police and public safety are investigating the Jason Kelce incident, in which the former NFL star threw a heckler’s phone to the ground after the person uttered a homophobic slur toward Kelce while referring to his brother.

Penn State Police spokeswoman Jacqueline Sheader confirmed the investigation to USA TODAY Sports Tuesday afternoon, adding that the process is ongoing.

The incident, which occurred just outside Beaver Stadium on Saturday as Penn State hosted Ohio State, was reported by university police. According to the police daily crime log, an “officer observed a visitor damaging personal property” outside the stadium. The offenses were criminal deception and misdemeanor.

Social media footage showed Kelce walking through a crowd as several people acknowledged him and asked for selfies. However, one person hurled anti-LGTBQ slurs at Kelce about his brother, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce.

“Hey Kelce! “How does it feel that your brother is a slur for dating Taylor Swift?” the person shouted.

Kelce turned around, grabbed the person’s phone and stuck it into the ground before picking up the phone and walking away. Another video shared on social media showed the fan chasing Kelce and saying, “Give me my phone.” Kelce then appeared to say the same insult toward the person.

The former Philadelphia Eagles All-Pro center and current ESPN analyst apologized for his role in the incident before the Chiefs-Tampa Bay Buccaneers game on Monday night. He said he “fell to a level I shouldn’t have.”

“Everyone saw everything that happened this week on social media,” Kelce said. “Look, I’m not happy with anything that happened. I’m not proud of it. In a heated moment I decided to answer hate with hate and I just don’t think that’s a productive thing to do.”

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