DA opts not to press charges on Cam and Hootie...

I've kept my mouth shut on this issue since the very beginning. The crap that was coming out of some these posters here about our players irritates the crap out of me, and now that it came out that there was insufficient evidence for prosecution, I expected more here to be more apologetic. I too was almost charged with possession, the cop who arrested me illegally detained me, held me on a traffic stop for a whole hour for a dog to search my truck. They tore my truck apart, ripped the dash out and trashed my pickup to find less than .1 gram of weed. Court time came, lawyer was prepared for court, and I got a call as I was driving to court that the DA declined to press charges. The fact of the matter is that lower courts are not wasting tax payer money on trying these bs marijuana cases any longer. It's a waste of time for everyone involved. I think it's the old school conservatism values which force a lot of these old timers to feel the need to scathe these players. Fact is, these kids were in the wrong place at the wrong time and Coach Saban knew what he was doing when he decided to hold off on the decision. Every single player that had come into the program, and had been dismissed for misconduct were justified. Why would this case be any different. We should all be thankful our powerhouse coach possesses the patience to hold off on a decision before the facts come out. I seriously can't believe how out of hand the last thread got, these are our players and some of you wanted them burnt at the stake. Absolute shame.

The issue seems to be resolved, and yet there are ton of people out there screaming that there is a need for them to be punished, but doesn't realize that it was already doled out to the players in the beginning. They didn't bother to read articles or anything like that. They don't want to hear about the other 2 guys who were in the car with the players. They don't want to hear about how police messed up the search in the car. They don't wanna hear about the fact DA tend to go light on first time offenders. They don't want to hear about how DA did the right thing by dropping the charges. They just want go by what other people is saying. So, I'm disappointed that this received lot of unwanted attention, but it's over now. Let's move forward.

4Q Basket Case said:

Agreed 100%. All the actions in the document are designed to prevent recurrence. They also require a lot of work and take up enough time that it's both punishment and deterrence.

I also think Saban knew about, and probably facilitated, the publication of the actions. We've had other incidents, and not one word as to how it was handled internally got out. Not so here.

He knew how it would look to remain publicly silent on his response to a bad (thought not prosecutable) set of facts involving the combination of drugs and guns.

The man is a genius at building both his own brand and the image of his program. Think this won't register with parents on the recruiting trail?

He knows when to keep quiet and when to go public, even when it's not him personally going public. This is why he's a bargain, even at $8 million a year.

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Saban didn't release these documents. They were released by the DA's office. Saban might have allowed them to be released, but they came from Monroe, not Tuscaloosa.

WSIV70 said:

I do not think athletes should get preferential treatment, but I do think they should be held to a higher standard outside of the legal system because of all that is given them (I'm not implying inappropriate benefits, just simply mean full ride to college, with some additional perks.) If a DA doesn't have enough or appropriately gathered evidence to put forth a trial with a high percentage of a conviction, then he shouldn't waste taxpayers money in doing so and create a circus. Internally is a different story. I would have to believe that the behavior of Robinson and Jones is not what Saban expects of his players and thus he has every right and should discipline them internally. As a fan, I would like to see it at a minimum of the first half of the first game, but would prefer one game.

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How well do you know these players? Do you know all the details about the incident? If a person does not have intimate personal knowledge of these players and detail knowledge of the incident, then that person does not know enough to be making decisions on whether these players should or should not be suspended for a half game, an entire game, 10 games or no games.

My impression is that a lot of Bama fans want punishment just to shutup critics. I believe there are some that want punishment just so they can be justified in bad mouthing other schools when those schools players screw up.

Should there be more punishment for these players? I haven't the slightest idea. But there is a person who knows and he is being paid $8m a year to make the right decision and he has my support if he suspends or does not suspend.

dWarriors88 said:

arrested me illegally . . . to find less than .1 gram of weed. .

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Sounds like PC to arrest.

4Q Basket Case said:

That's my point. He released them without being the one that released them. Gave cover to both the Monroe DA and our program. Outstanding move all around.

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Well its obvious the police were trying to burn our players. I mean how do you fill out an arrest report not even mention 2 other people who were searched and released? This us just shoddy police work anyway you look at it. Once the DA likely find out about this and assuredly the defendant counsel was going to introduce such evidence to the judge it was done. The DA wasn't going waste time over such an underhanded stunt pulled by the police with the minimal circumstances involved. But somehow the DA felt the need to cover for the police by citing some sort of higher moral ground for not prosecuting.

Given the situation, I think the remedial program these players are going through is appropriate and thorough and probably more than sufficient for the DA as well. Certainly the PR could have been handled better but this is the best outcome for every party to this issue.

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dWarriors88 said:

less than .1 gram of weed

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drwho said:

Sounds like PC to arrest.

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hahahaha, you'd get more than that in your clothes and hair at a Willie Nelson concert.

It's obvious this guy did zero research before writing this article. "Journalism" and "agenda driven stories" are now the same to most media.

http://theadvocate.com/news/opinion...goofy-monroe-da-creates-blatant-perv#comments

russtang said:

It's obvious this guy did zero research before writing this article. "Journalism" and "agenda driven stories" are now the same to most media.

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Yeah, there are a few agenda driven articles out there about this. That is one of the consequences that Saban speaks of. You simply can't control the story once it starts.

Given Coach Saban's dislike of the media, I'm sure he isn't looking forward to SEC media days next week. I'm sure the Clay Travis types will try to make him go on a rant. I hope he addresses the Cam and Hootie thing in his opening speech and then doesn't answer any more questions about it.

JDCrimson said:

Well its obvious the police were trying to burn our players. I mean how do you fill out an arrest report not even mention 2 other people who were searched and released?...

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Just found a picture of the police officer involved...

WSIV70 said:

I do not think athletes should get preferential treatment, but I do think they should be held to a higher standard outside of the legal system because of all that is given them (I'm not implying inappropriate benefits, just simply mean full ride to college, with some additional perks.) If a DA doesn't have enough or appropriately gathered evidence to put forth a trial with a high percentage of a conviction, then he shouldn't waste taxpayers money in doing so and create a circus. Internally is a different story. I would have to believe that the behavior of Robinson and Jones is not what Saban expects of his players and thus he has every right and should discipline them internally. As a fan, I would like to see it at a minimum of the first half of the first game, but would prefer one game.

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Coach Saban has been tough, but fair, and I know this because the results of the program speak for it. I would like to see the punishment limited to what Coach Saban has doled out thus far, and I don't think it will include missing any playing time. Nor should it. It really doesn't matter what our preferences are as fans.

TideEngineer08 said:

Coach Saban has been tough, but fair, and I know this because the results of the program speak for it. I would like to see the punishment limited to what Coach Saban has doled out thus far, and I don't think it will include missing any playing time. Nor should it. It really doesn't matter what our preferences are as fans.

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If RTR91 is sticking with this prediction of no missed time - I trust him and has sources.

Rush said:

Just found a picture of the police officer involved...

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I found his review for these on amazon:

Wearing these, I feel cool and refreshed even after a long night of busting Bama players on bogus weapon charges.

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TideEngineer08 said:

Coach Saban has been tough, but fair, and I know this because the results of the program speak for it. I would like to see the punishment limited to what Coach Saban has doled out thus far, and I don't think it will include missing any playing time. Nor should it. It really doesn't matter what our preferences are as fans.

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I would also like to point out that the preferences of disgruntled, unintelligent sports media matter even less.

Alasippi said:

In total agreement. BUT, the officer, in that specific instance, had two choices, at that particular moment.
One. Arrest Cam and Hootie and let the D.A. decide their fate.
OR..say.."OK kids, put the guns and pot up and drive home".
Seriously Krazy. Which should he have done?
I'm glad Cam and Hootie seem to be getting off without further incident. But the cop's not a criminal for arresting them.
sip

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I get the Gist of your post that you have been branded for . Good thing is in the end the process seemed to work. It's a tough time to knock cops that do this stuff 24/7. I am sure it gets old on the beat, and they are not always right. At least the DA didn't say "well....I'll just leave it up to the whatever the police said" lol.

With the risk of getting this kicked to non sports I will say this. These kids, as dumb as it was to do what they did, handled themselves the way one should when you are approached by any officer & you have a weapon.


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So today Scab has an article up bashing Saban for not showing police proper respect. He criticizes Saban for pointing out only the two Bama players were arrested when there were actually four guys in the car. I would link the article, but I'm on my iPad and I don't know how.

This has got to be one of the most disappointing articles I can remember Scab writing. Infuriating might be a better term rather than disappointing.