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Barnett to go before grand jury probing Colorado scandal

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    Barnett to go before grand jury probing Colorado scandal

    July 30, 2004
    SportsLine.com wire reports

    DENVER -- Colorado football coach Gary Barnett was called Friday to appear before a grand jury investigating his program's recruiting practices.

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    Barnett did not immediately go before the panel. He wouldn't comment to reporters.

    He was suspended in February for comments he made about two women who accused football players of rape, then was reinstated in May after an investigative panel concluded he shouldn't be fired.

    The grand jury investigation is the first indication criminal charges could be filed in a scandal that led to sweeping changes in the football recruiting program and a scathing review of university leadership.

    At the governor's request, Attorney General Ken Salazar's office has been investigating. Salazar already decided against filing assault charges on allegations involving nine women dating to 1997, citing concerns about the evidence and the reluctance of the women to go forward with the cases.

    The grand jury has heard from players, director of football operations David Hansburg, campus police and others since May. Legal experts have said they think investigators are trying to figure out whether university funds were misused, among other things.

    Salazar's office has declined to comment.


    AP NEWS
    The Associated Press News Service

    Copyright 2004, The Associated Press, All Rights Reserved
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  • DJRamFan
    Colorado indicted by grand jury in recruiting scandal
    by DJRamFan
    Aug. 22, 2004
    SportsLine.com wire reports

    DENVER -- A state grand jury has handed down an indictment regarding the use of prostitutes to entice football recruits to the University of Colorado, according to a published report.

    The Denver Post reported the development in its Sunday editions. The newspaper, however, does not say who is named in the indictment. Whomever is indicted will be notified within 10 days and then will have 10 days to respond.

    Ken Lane, spokesman for Colorado Attorney General Ken Salazar, did not return a phone call from the Associated Press seeking comment Sunday.

    Among those who testified before the panel were football coach Gary Barnett, Athletics Director Richard Tharp, several players and Pasha Cowan, the former manager of an escort service.

    Cowan said football recruiting aide Nathan Maxcey paid her $2,500 for three call girls to visit "very young, very athletic men" at Boulder-area hotels. Maxcey has denied any wrongdoing.

    The grand jury began its work in May after Gov. Bill Owens called for an investigation into allegations that the Colorado football program used sex, strippers and alcohol to recruit promising athletes.

    A commission appointed by the university regents concluded that players arranged sex, drugs and alcohol for recruits but said there was no evidence Colorado officials "knowingly sanctioned" the activities.

    Still pending are federal lawsuits filed by three women who say they were raped by recruits or players in December 2001.



    AP NEWS
    The Associated Press News Service

    Copyright 2004, The Associated Press, All Rights Reserved
    -08-23-2004, 10:40 AM
  • DJRamFan
    Ex-Nevada RB gets probation for assault, attempted robbery
    by DJRamFan
    Jan. 26, 2005
    SportsLine.com wire reports

    RENO, Nev. -- A former running back for the Nevada football team was sentenced to five years' probation Tuesday in connection with an incident that occurred in September 2003.

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    Joseph Bwire, 20, who also played at Reno's McQueen High School, pleaded guilty in Washoe County District Court in October to assault with a deadly weapon and attempted burglary.

    He allegedly fired a single shot from a handgun as he tried to flee after a residential burglary.

    The assault charge carries a penalty of up to six years in state prison and up to $5,000 fine. The attempted burglary charge could lead to five years in prison and a $10,000 fine.

    Both the district attorney's office and the Division of Parole and Probation both urged prison time for Bwire.

    Washoe District Judge Steven R. Kosatch sentenced him to 1-4 years on each count, then suspended the prison term and placed him on probation.

    AP NEWS
    The Associated Press News Service

    Copyright 2004-2005, The Associated Press, All Rights Reserved
    -01-27-2005, 01:32 PM
  • DJRamFan
    Charges dropped, reduced against Vols from party brawl
    by DJRamFan
    Aug. 1, 2005
    CBS SportsLine.com wire reports




    KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- Prosecutors dropped a felony aggravated assault charge against one Tennessee football player and reduced the charge against another Monday in a case stemming from a fight at a campus party last March.

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    Tennessee defensive end Robert Ayers and linebacker Jerod Mayo, who both redshirted last season as freshmen, were charged with hitting a fellow student when several fights broke out between football players and members of Omega Psi Phi fraternity.

    The charge against Mayo was dismissed after a witness would not cooperate with prosecutors.

    The charge against Ayers was reduced to misdemeanor assault. He pleaded guilty to the lesser charge and now has nearly 12 months to pay court costs and make restitution to the victim. After that, the charge will be erased from his record. The amount of restitution has not yet been determined, but it will not be more than $3,000.

    Aggravated assault is a felony, and sentences could vary from 3 to 15 years in prison.

    In a statement Monday, Phillip Fulmer said that Ayers will have to sit out the first two games of the season, complete community service and anger management counseling and abide by a curfew during the fall semester.

    Ayers also was suspended from summer school and placed on indefinite probation by the university, Fulmer said.

    Mayo was not suspended from the team.

    "I was glad to see Jerod Mayo cleared of any issues," Fulmer said.

    AP NEWS
    The Associated Press News Service

    Copyright 2004-2005, The Associated Press, All Rights Reserved
    -08-02-2005, 01:35 PM
  • DJRamFan
    Vols DT McDaniel makes plea deal in assault case
    by DJRamFan
    July 28, 2005
    CBS SportsLine.com wire reports




    KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- Tennessee defensive tackle Tony McDaniel pleaded guilty Thursday to hitting a student in the face during a pickup basketball game in January.

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    McDaniel, suspended since the incident, will be allowed to return to the team, but coach Phillip Fulmer announced that McDaniel will have to sit out the first two games of the season, complete community service, attend anger management counseling and abide by a curfew for the fall semester.

    "He is a good young man that made a bad decision and now has a second chance to move forward. I hope and feel he will take advantage of it," Fulmer said.

    McDaniel made a deal with prosecutors to have the original felony charge reduced to misdemeanor assault. He was sentenced to 11 months and 29 days, but was placed on immediate probation and isn't expected to spend any time in jail.

    Knox County Criminal Court Judge Ray Jenkins told McDaniel that he will remain under supervised probation until he pays restitution to the victim.

    McDaniel was charged with aggravated assault in January and could have faced up to six years if convicted under the felony charge.

    His case also was dealt with by the university, which placed him on indefinite probation. He was suspended for the summer school sessions and is not allowed to enter the student recreation center where the fight took place, school officials said.

    The 6-foot-7, 295-pound McDaniel was accused of hitting Edward Goodrich, a 26-year-old student. Goodrich testified during a hearing in April that the punch broke his face in four places and doctors had to insert a metal plate to treat his injuries.

    McDaniel declined to be interviewed after the hearing. His attorney, Don Bosch, said he was very pleased with the outcome.

    "We appreciate Mr. Goodrich's position and, frankly, the seriousness of his injuries. This is a very serious matter that was unintended by Tony. We're going to make this right with Mr. Goodrich," Bosch said.

    McDaniel, who will be a junior this fall, made his first career start for Tennessee in the Volunteers' 38-7 win over Texas A&M in the Cotton Bowl.

    The defensive tackle is one of 13 Tennessee players who have been either arrested or cited for crimes ranging from aggravated assault to underage drinking since February 2004.

    AP NEWS
    The Associated Press News Service

    Copyright 2004-2005, The Associated Press, All Rights Reserved
    -07-31-2005, 03:06 PM
  • DJRamFan
    Violent behavior behind me, says new Ole Miss coach
    by DJRamFan
    Dec. 17, 2004
    SportsLine.com wire reports

    OXFORD, Miss. -- New Mississippi coach Ed Orgeron was charged with repeated domestic violence more than a decade ago when he was an assistant at Miami, according to records obtained Friday by the Associated Press.

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    Background checks were conducted on Orgeron and other candidates, chancellor Robert Khayat said at a news conference introducing Orgeron as the Rebels' coach. Athletic director Pete Boone said school officials are aware of the coach's history.

    "Many years ago coach Orgeron had a very unpleasant experience that involved behavior he is not proud of," Khayat said at Thursday's news conference. "Pete Boone, the athletics committee and I are totally comfortable and confident that coach Orgeron is going to provide the kind of role model that we want for our program."

    Orgeron, hired this week to replace David Cutcliffe at Ole Miss, had a restraining order filed against him by a Dade County, Fla., woman who accused him of repeated violence 13 years ago, said Robert Keen, a supervisor with the Dade County clerk's office.

    The charge of repeat violence was filed on April 10, 1991, and a restraining order was filed the next month, records show. Keen told the AP that records also show Orgeron did not violate that order.


    Ed Orgeron says his past mistakes are 'no longer part of my daily living.' (AP)
    The woman later received a permanent injunction, Keen said, and the court order prohibited him from going to her home or workplace. The injunction was terminated in July 1992, Keen said.

    "All I'm going to say is this: I'm completely comfortable with the steps I've taken to correct the mistakes in my life, and they're no longer part of my daily living," Orgeron said Thursday in Oxford.

    Orgeron also was involved in a 1992 incident in which he reportedly head-butted the manager of a nightclub in Baton Rouge, La., several newspapers reported.

    Felony second-degree battery charges were dropped when the manager settled out of court, according to the Los Angeles Daily News.

    Orgeron was fired at Miami after that incident. He spent a year away from football before resuming his coaching career in 1994 at Nicholls State.

    Orgeron met his wife, Kelly, in 1996. The couple has three children.

    Khayat's secretary said he was out of town Friday, and Boone did not immediately return telephone messages seeking comment.

    AP NEWS
    The Associated Press News Service

    Copyright 2004, The Associated Press, All Rights Reserved
    -12-18-2004, 01:48 PM
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