The LSU way...

[GalensGhost 0]

From an article on LSU tackle Claude Wroten posted on ESPN.com:

The details

At the combine, Wroten began most interviews by conceding to scouts that, while the incident never went public and didn't draw a suspension, he tested positive for marijuana during his junior season. Then, even more painfully, Wroten, a country kid from Bastrop, La., with zero pretense about him, detailed the events of Jan. 4. That's when Wroten was pulled over for speeding near Sterlington, La., and police discovered a cache of marijuana and $4,000 in his car.

Arrested and charged with possession of marijuana and intent to distribute, Wroten spent several hours in the Ouachita Correctional Center before making bail. A month later, prosecutors decided not to pursue the charges because of the 2006 draft.

Is it just me or is this episode disgraceful and symbolic of what's wrong with college athletics at SOME places. Had this been an Auburn player, I certainly would want the coaches to discipline him for being caught with dope and I would expect the legal system to treat him as any other, not make allowances for his "draft status" when busted with a car full of ganj and a stack of cash.

Maybe I'm just old school, but I am appalled.

[StatTiger 3,188]

I agree. I believe there was an issue about the officer's probable cause to conduct a search of the vehicle which is why the case was dropped.

[auwallace 6]

i know how the law works but that is ridiculous that the case was dropped. Just because there was an issue of probable cause doesn't make him any less guilty by making the dank any less in the trunk of his car. If someone was pulled over and the cops found a kidnap victim in the trunk but the search was illegal does the kidnapper get off? This is all a load of BS, people act like the cops are always out to get them but if they stayed out of trouble then there wouldn't be anything to worry about.

[StatTiger 3,188]

i know how the law works but that is ridiculous that the case was dropped.  Just because there was an issue of probable cause doesn't make him any less guilty by making the dank any less in the trunk of his car.  If someone was pulled over and the cops found a kidnap victim in the trunk but the search was illegal does the kidnapper get off?  This is all a load of BS, people act like the cops are always out to get them but if they stayed out of trouble then there wouldn't be anything to worry about.

231154[/snapback]

I here ya bro. Believe me, as a criminal investigator, I hate to see any suspect walk because a police officer failed to do their job right. However, I realize there are rules to the game to protect citizens from being wrongly convicted. Several years ago, I was accused of beating a confession out of a serial rapist, who I had charged with 26 counts of rape over a 15 year period. We believe he was responsible for over 100.

The one thing that saved me was the four videotapes I recorded during my interviews with the suspect and the confessions he made. During the tapes, you could see how I not only treated him well, I also fed him, allowed him to smoke whenever he wanted. Not once did I ever have to raise my voice or use ONE curse word much less put a hand to him. Without those tapes, all his lawyer had to do is convince one jurror that he was mistreaded during the interview and the damage could have been done. With the tapes and DNA evidence, he had no leg to stand on and he plead out to 4 life sentences.

[GalensGhost 0]

i know how the law works but that is ridiculous that the case was dropped.  Just because there was an issue of probable cause doesn't make him any less guilty by making the dank any less in the trunk of his car.  If someone was pulled over and the cops found a kidnap victim in the trunk but the search was illegal does the kidnapper get off?  This is all a load of BS, people act like the cops are always out to get them but if they stayed out of trouble then there wouldn't be anything to worry about.

231154[/snapback]

While the law letting him off for "probable cause" is pathetic, what I find even more disgusting is the "got caught with mj as a junior, but the incident was never made public and he never served a suspension.

***Note: Probable cause in Louisiana means that the perp will probably cause the pockets of the arresting officer, judge and prosecutor to swell when he gets his payday. ***

[abrnfanatc 6]

***Note: Probable cause in Louisiana means that the perp will probably cause the pockets of the arresting officer, judge and prosecutor to swell when he gets his payday. ***

The picture of justice in Louisiana...

[AWK 0]

I don't want to burst anyones bubble, but this happens in every college town and state in America. And its even worse on the pro level.

[sogaaufan 27]

I think the Lamarcus Rowell incident gives us a pretty good indication of how CTT handles these "little situations".

[mcgufcm 4,107]

just for clarification, galen you completely misrepresented the original article. they didn't drop the charges because of the 2006 nfl draft, as you so boldly state; that's not even implied by the article. it says:

"A month later, prosecutors decided not to pursue the charges because of a lack of evidence and some questions over the legality of the search."

if you want to put your own ideas out about why the charges were dropped or what happened, that's fine. not a problem. just don't quote the original article for one full paragraph, continue quoting the article into the second, then completely change what the author wrote in the latter half of a sentence to make it seem like Len Pasquarelli actually wrote that unfounded assumption as fact. that's not right.

also important to note, there is no mention in the article of "a stack of cash" in his car. it's not too far fetched to think that he's actually telling the truth when he says he was going to smoke the weed, not sell it. not everyone caught with dope is a dope dealer.

also, it's not like lsu is a ton different than other schools on this matter. smokin' ray was back on the field for bama almost as soon as his pot was discovered, and arkansas has had a long track record of guys actually selling pot and being allowed to play (during the ken hamlin years).

are we different? yeah, and i hope we stay that way, but don't look too far down your nose. we've had a few incidents even during the tubby era (most recently kevin sears' dui). thankfully we have a solid, consistent record of punishment, but all it takes is one allowance for people to say "that's how they do it over at auburn!" we're not that far removed from dd greene, robert baker, and the other criminals that strolled the sidelines during the late 90's.

plus, everyone thought it was funny to talk about chris porter smokin' pot when he was dominating on the court. i don't remember too many people: a) doubting this mj consumption or complaining about him being allowed to play. don't think porter picked up his habit after he left auburn; it was already in play on the plains.

[GalensGhost 0]

just for clarification, galen you completely misrepresented the original article. they didn't drop the charges because of the 2006 nfl draft, as you so boldly state; that's not even implied by the article. it says:

"A month later, prosecutors decided not to pursue the charges because of a lack of evidence and some questions over the legality of the search."

if you want to put your own ideas out about why the charges were dropped or what happened, that's fine. not a problem. just don't quote the original article for one full paragraph, continue quoting the article into the second, then completely change what the author wrote in the latter half of a sentence to make it seem like Len Pasquarelli actually wrote that unfounded assumption as fact. that's not right.

also important to note, there is no mention in the article of "a stack of cash" in his car. it's not too far fetched to think that he's actually telling the truth when he says he was going to smoke the weed, not sell it. not everyone caught with dope is a dope dealer.

also, it's not like lsu is a ton different than other schools on this matter. smokin' ray was back on the field for bama almost as soon as his pot was discovered, and arkansas has had a long track record of guys actually selling pot and being allowed to play (during the ken hamlin years).

are we different? yeah, and i hope we stay that way, but don't look too far down your nose. we've had a few incidents even during the tubby era (most recently kevin sears' dui). thankfully we have a solid, consistent record of punishment, but all it takes is one allowance for people to say "that's how they do it over at auburn!" we're not that far removed from dd greene, robert baker, and the other criminals that strolled the sidelines during the late 90's.

plus, everyone thought it was funny to talk about chris porter smokin' pot when he was dominating on the court. i don't remember too many people: a) doubting this mj consumption or complaining about him being allowed to play. don't think porter picked up his habit after he left auburn; it was already in play on the plains.

231176[/snapback]

Apologies. I took the quote I used from another message board and then looked up the article to have the link. I didn't take the time to re-read the original article and cross-reference the quotes in it. I assumed they were valid. My bad. Whatever the punishment is, I'll take it.

Couple of other points.

$4000? That's a stack of cash to me. The article does say he was stopped with a "cache" of dope (in his trunk, by his own admission) and $4K. I don't generally carry around that kind of green. I don't know anybody who does, least of all a college student. $4.00? Maybe. In quarters.

As for Porter? I didn't find the dope inferences funny. Not in the least. If he'd been caught with it while playing for AU it would be my expectation that he be disciplined. Had he not been, I would have been disappointed and just as critical.

[SouthLink02 8]

Where exactly does it show that they didn't pursue it due to the draft?

[Guest Tigrinum Major]

don't think porter picked up his habit after he left auburn; it was already in play on the plains.

231176[/snapback]

I have a sneaking feeling it was in play well before he was at Auburn, probably back on the block in Abbeville. It was ignored by the old regime, yet another reason I am glad that they are gone.

[Texan4Auburn 1,626]

Didn't Porter get in trouble for drugs while he was at Auburn? I don't know why I think he did but I do.

[GalensGhost 0]

Didn't Porter get in trouble for drugs while he was at Auburn?  I don't know why I think he did but I do.

231181[/snapback]

Okay, Porter isn't the issue. Whether he toked or didn't toke isn't the issue.

With Wroten we have a player who was known to do it at LSU and wasn't disciplined. That's all.

[mcgufcm 4,107]

and my apoligies for missing the part about the money in the article. i glossed over it looking for the quote b/c i found it hard to believe and missed that part entirely. whatever my punishment, i'll take it as well.

and i know porter isn't the issue (by the way, he never got busted while at auburn. he was suspended for having contact with an agent, not pot, and yes i believe his habit orginated in his hometown. i just meant that it didn't take a pause while he was on campus). i was just using it as an example of a guy like baker and greene and that whole crew at the end of bowden's run of guys, who were just as guilty as wroten, that played at auburn recently. my point is, we're not far removed from the same conduct so i don't get really uppity when i see that kind of stuff at another institution. i just wish they, like we've already done, would reform and tighten up.

[Gorilla 0]

Nice job with that quote buddy. Don't ever let the facts interfere with a good rant.

Instead of making up things to get all self righteous and indignant about, maybe you should consider the real point of the article - Wroten did something wrong and he's owning up to it. He's not making excuses about it, or trying to justify it, he's admitting that he screwed up. You act like that article is some sort of expose on corruption in the LSU athletic department, when in fact it's about a guy trying to do the right thing. I'm not defending Wroten or excusing his past behavior, but the article isn't about his past behavior. It's about how he is handling it now.

[JohnDeere 0]

Nice job with that quote buddy. Don't ever let the facts interfere with a good rant.

Instead of making up things to get all self righteous and indignant about, maybe you should consider the real point of the article - Wroten did something wrong and he's owning up to it. He's not making excuses about it, or trying to justify it, he's admitting that he screwed up. You act like that article is some sort of expose on corruption in the LSU athletic department, when in fact it's about a guy trying to do the right thing. I'm not defending Wroten or excusing his past behavior, but the article isn't about his past behavior. It's about how he is handling it now.

231200[/snapback]

Doing the "right thing"? What is doing the "right thing"? Not getting caught selling mj?

[mcgufcm 4,107]

owning up to a mistake and reforming a past lifestyle of drug use. i believe that is the "right thing" he's referring to.

[GalensGhost 0]

Nice job with that quote buddy. Don't ever let the facts interfere with a good rant.

Instead of making up things to get all self righteous and indignant about, maybe you should consider the real point of the article - Wroten did something wrong and he's owning up to it. He's not making excuses about it, or trying to justify it, he's admitting that he screwed up. You act like that article is some sort of expose on corruption in the LSU athletic department, when in fact it's about a guy trying to do the right thing. I'm not defending Wroten or excusing his past behavior, but the article isn't about his past behavior. It's about how he is handling it now.

231200[/snapback]

What part of "caught and not punished" did you miss? Happened during his junior season and didn't miss a game. You ask me, that's an indictment.

[TexasTiger 12,950]

i know how the law works but that is ridiculous that the case was dropped.  Just because there was an issue of probable cause doesn't make him any less guilty by making the dank any less in the trunk of his car.  If someone was pulled over and the cops found a kidnap victim in the trunk but the search was illegal does the kidnapper get off?  This is all a load of BS, people act like the cops are always out to get them but if they stayed out of trouble then there wouldn't be anything to worry about.

231154[/snapback]

To clarify, even if the search was illegal, in the case you you describe, I'm pretty sure that there would be other ample evidence to convict the person on. Even in the case that gave the name to the Miranda warnings, Miranda was still convicted on other evidence.

[abrnfanatc 6]

Didn't Porter get in trouble for drugs while he was at Auburn?  I don't know why I think he did but I do.

231181[/snapback]

Yes he did. He served a 3 game suspension in his Sr. year for an "undisclosed violation of school policy."