Four Michigan State football players charged with assault entering diversionary program

Michigan State Michigan

Michigan State football players are involved in incidents in the Michigan Stadium tunnel after an NCAA college football game on Saturday, Oct. 29, 2022 in Ann Arbor, Mich. (Kyle Austin/MLive Media Group via AP)AP

ANN ARBOR – Four Michigan State football players charged with misdemeanor assault for their roles in a postgame tunnel incident at Michigan are in line to have the charges dropped.

Defensive ends Itayvion “Tank” Brown and Brandon Wright and defensive backs Angelo Grose and Justin White entered into a pre-plea diversionary program on Friday morning in Ann Arbor’s 15th District Court.

“The result here for our clients is a no-brainer because this case will be dismissed,” said Wade Fink, who is Brown’s lawyer. “In order to get a dismissal, they’re being asked to do things they would already do – charity and be in the community and be great citizens, which they already are. None of these kids are guilty of anything and if it was a situation where we couldn’t earn a dismissal for basically what we do anyway, then we would have fought it. This splits the difference here of getting out there and doing some good things in the world and also earning a dismissal without ever having to admit something they didn’t do.”

The four players were charged in November with misdemeanor aggravated assault for the actions in the tunnel following a 29-7 loss at Michigan on Oct. 29. They were among those who were captured on video striking Michigan defensive back Ja’Den McBurrows.

“The most important outcome of today’s hearing is this case is on a straight line to being dismissed upon motion of the prosecutor,” said Max Manoogian, who is Grose’s attorney. “It’s going to happen outside of court. There is going to be no criminal responsibility whatsoever, there are no admissions being made, no pleas being tendered. All that happens today is we’ve set a date for this case to be dismissed in the future.”

The pre-plea diversionary program was established by the Washtenaw County Prosecutor’s Office in 2021 for individuals charged with certain misdemeanors. The four players will work with the probation office but won’t be on probation.

“We can confirm that the young people scheduled for court appearances today have taken the first step in our pre-plea diversion program – one which neither requires a guilty plea nor a conviction be entered,” Washtenaw County chief assistant prosecuting attorney Victoria Burton-Harris said in a statement. “Under that program, participants work with a case manager to create and successfully complete a plan for accountability. Upon completion of that plan, charges are dismissed. Our office has had significantly high success with participants completing this program, and expect these young people to be no different if they elect to proceed with this diversion program. We wish all parties involved well.”

Brown, Grose, White and Wright are among seven Michigan State players who were charged for their roles following the loss at Michigan. Defensive back Khary Crump was charged with felonious assault for swinging his helmet at Michigan defensive back Gemon Green and took plea deal earlier this month to misdemeanor counts of assault and battery and disorderly person jostling. Crump is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 31 and his lawyer, Mike Nichols, doesn’t anticipate Crump will serve jail time.

Linebacker/defensive end Jacoby Windmon was charged with misdemeanor assault and battery and defensive end Zion Young was charged with misdemeanor aggravated assault. Both of those cases are pending and neither Windmon nor Young were in court Friday morning with the four who entered the pre-plea diversionary program.

Judge Karen Valvo on Friday lifted a bond condition for Brown, Grose, White and Wright that prohibited them from having contact with each other outside of football activities or when their lawyers were present. The four players are scheduled for a Feb. 24 appearance in court but Manoogian doesn’t anticipate that hearing will take place. He believes they will return to court in about six months for the case to be dismissed.

“There would never be a plea in this case,” Manoogian said. “None of these players committed criminal acts. They’re going to do some good work in the community, do a little bit of philanthropic work, jump through a couple of hoops and the prosecutor’s going to dismiss the case on their own.”

Following the Oct. 29 incidents, coach Mel Tucker and athletic director Alan Haller indefinitely suspended the seven players charged, along with defensive back Malcolm Jones. Jones wasn’t charged and was reinstated before the Spartans lost the season finale at Penn State to finish with a 5-7 record.

Crump remains suspended while the other six facing charges were reinstated after the season ended. The Big Ten fined Michigan State a conference record $100,000 and suspended Crump for the first eight games of the 2023 season. The conference determined the suspensions served by the other players was sufficient.

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