Florida Attorney General Warns WNBA of Potential Assault Charges After Hard Foul on Sophie Cunningham

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier issued a public warning to the WNBA over the weekend, stating that players who commit certain hard fouls could face criminal assault and battery charges if similar incidents occurred in his state.

Uthmeier’s comments came in response to a play during a Saturday game between the Indiana Fever and Chicago Sky in which Sky guard DiJonai Carrington delivered a clothesline-style foul to the head and neck area of Fever guard Sophie Cunningham. The contact sent Cunningham to the floor with a bloody mouth. Officials assessed Carrington a Flagrant 2 foul and ejected her from the game.

In a post on X, Uthmeier wrote, “The WNBA knows better than to play games down here in Florida, because I’ll be charging people with assault.” He later clarified that he meant “assault and battery.”

The incident has drawn widespread attention amid ongoing debates within and around the league. Cunningham has recently spoken publicly against biological males competing in women’s sports, comments that have intensified discussions about eligibility standards. After her ejection, Carrington posted on social media referencing “WHITE PRIVILEGE” in connection with the play and the subsequent call.

There is currently no WNBA franchise based in Florida. Previous teams, the Orlando Miracle and Miami Sol, left the league after the 2002 season. The Fever-Sky game itself was not played in the state. Uthmeier’s remarks therefore function as a broader statement of how Florida law enforcement would view such contact under state criminal statutes rather than an immediate enforcement action tied to a specific venue.

In a separate post, Uthmeier also criticized the league’s approach to defining “woman,” writing that the WNBA continues to treat the question as “complex and nuanced” instead of recognizing what he described as a simple biological truth. He linked the issue to potential physical risks on the court, asking, “What’s next, men assaulting women on the WNBA courts?”

Cunningham addressed the foul after the game, describing it as unnecessary and stating she had no prior conflict with Carrington. The WNBA has indicated it is reviewing eligibility policies in light of recent controversies involving transgender athletes and related public statements by players.Uthmeier’s intervention highlights growing external scrutiny of both the physical intensity of play in the WNBA and the league’s handling of sex-based eligibility questions. While the attorney general’s office has not announced any formal investigation related to the Saturday game, the public warning underscores the potential for state-level legal consequences if similar contact occurs within Florida’s jurisdiction.