Tuscaloosa County Coach Scuffled With Student Before Public Intoxication Arrest

A coach who was arrested at a special education center in Northport Friday was involved in an altercation with a student before police found both empty and open cans of alcohol in his desk, according to new court documents.

A deposition filed Tuesday claims Coach James Steven Cox was "struggling with a student" at the Lloyd Wood Education Center on 26th Avenue in Northport when a School Resource Officer separated them.

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The SRO said they smelled alcohol coming from Cox and the 40-year-old was swaying back and forth, with bloodshot eyes and dilated pupils that suggested he was intoxicated.

The SRO called additional law enforcement officers to the school, who spoke with Cox and asked him to take a breathalyzer test, which he allegedly refused on multiple occasions.

A search of his desk reportedly turned up two opened, still-cold, hall-full cans of alcoholic beverages, along with four empty containers.

Cox was charged with public intoxication, which is a violation, not a misdemeanor or felony, and jailed on a $300 bond.

He was released but has been jailed again for violating the terms of probation he was given after pleading guilty this April to a third-degree domestic violence charge he earned last September. He remains an inmate on Tuesday afternoon.

Keri Johnson, the superintendent of the Tuscaloosa County School System, was limited in what she could say in a statement sent to parents, faculty and staff at the Lloyd Wood Education Center Friday.

"Because of laws that govern employee privacy, we cannot publicly discuss details of a legal investigation involving an employee," Johnson wrote. "However, it is important for our families and community to know that Mr. Cox is on administrative leave, and TCSS will cooperate fully with law enforcement in their investigation."