Coach accused of gunfire during Kingsessing hoops game surrenders

A DELAWARE COUNTY man accused of shooting more than hoops during a weekend basketball game in Kingsessing claims that his gunfire was in self-defense.

Maurice Tavares, 26, surrendered to police yesterday with his attorney, Eugene Tinari.

Investigators had been seeking the Chester resident since Saturday, when he allegedly fired a single shot from his .40-caliber handgun while coaching a team of teens inside the Christy Recreation Center, on 55th Street near Whitby Avenue.

To hear Tinari tell it, Tavares was acting in desperation, fearful of the actions of an angry crowd.

In fact, the only reason Tavares was carrying his licensed handgun at a youth basketball game, his attorney said, was because he had been shot during a similar game years ago.

"It's a regrettable situation," Tinari said of Saturday's incident, "but he was just trying to get out of there without getting harmed."

Tavares will be charged with aggravated assault, simple assault, reckless endangerment and related offenses, police said.

The father of three was coaching a team of 14- to16-year-olds in a rec-league game against the neighborhood team. His team was ahead by 11 points in the second half, but the opposing team was rallying, according to Lt. John Walker of Southwest Detectives.

As the game heated up, people in the crowd of about 70 became agitated. Tensions rose, and Tavares allegedly got into an argument with spectators in the bleachers.

The opposing coach, 45, walked over to try to intervene, Walker said. The older man told Tavares to go back to the sideline, and he did so.

As he walked away, Tavares allegedly pulled a handgun - which Walker said he is permitted to carry - from his waistband and fired a single shot upward. It flew over the heads of the people in the crowd and shattered a window in the rec center.

The placement of that shot was no accident, according to Tinari.

He said his client acted from fear: About 15 to 20 spectators had "cornered him," Tinari said, backing him up against a wall while making threats. Some, he said, implied that they were carrying guns.

"In his state of mind, he had to do something to get them off him," Tinari said. "The law allows you to use force if you believe your life is in danger, or if you're in imminent danger of being injured, and that's what happened here, plain and simple."

So, not wanting to harm anyone, he pointed the gun away from the crowd and toward the ceiling, Tinari said.

After firing the shot, Tavares fled. No one was injured.

When the warrant was issued for Tavares' arrest, investigators contacted Tinari and made arrangements for the surrender.

Tinari said his client, who works at a day-care center, has a passion for coaching youth basketball. He sought a carry permit after he was shot in the leg during a basketball game. Since that injury - for which he still takes medication - Tavares always carries his gun, according to Tinari.

"This is a good man, a law-abiding individual," Tinari said. "They don't hand out gun licenses to people of ill repute."