Two top SEC athletes have both been linked to deaths within weeks of each other.
There’s Alabama Crimson Tide men’s basketball star Brandon Miller, who plans as first pick in NBA draftand Georgia standout DT Jalen Carter, who has the potential to go No. 1 in the NFL Draft.
Miller was bound to court to the fatal shooting of Jamea Jonae Harris. Det. of Tuscaloosa Branden Culpepper testified that Miller delivered the weapon to his former teammate Darius Mileswho in turn gave the gun to Michael Lynn Davis, who is not affiliated with the university.
Reportedly, Miller delivered the gun to Miles and was present when the shooting happened. Miller’s attorney said the gun was in the back of his car and he did not see or handle it. He has not been charged with a crime and Paula Whitley, the assistant chief assistant district attorney for Tuscaloosa, told AL.com that “there is nothing we can charge [Miller] with.”
“Although Darius has been accused of involvement in this tragedy, he maintains his innocence and looks forward to his day in court,” Birmingham law firm Boles Holmes White LLC said in a statement on behalf of Miles.
G/O Media may receive a commission
Miles, who has since been fired from the Crimson Tide, and Davis were both charged with capital murder on Friday.
Miles’ attorney, Mary Taylor, released a statement:
“While we are not surprised by the indictment based on the fact that a person accused of a crime is not allowed to present evidence to the grand jury, we are nevertheless disappointed that the government has presented this case to the grand jury as a capital murder considering the evidence uncovered during our investigation and the obvious weaknesses in the government’s case brought to light during the preliminary investigation.
“We’re not surprised by the indictment,” Davis’ attorney John Robbins told ESPN’s Elizabeth Merrill. “This was expected from the start. We are pleased that the state has acted quickly on this case so that we can take this case to court and have this case tried as quickly as possible in front of a jury. We will vigorously defend this case. and defending my client’s right to self-protection when someone points a gun at him and shoots him.
In a statement shared with The Tuscaloosa News, Robbins said, “Michael is a good person from a good family, and he intends to vigorously defend himself against these charges.”
Carter’s brush with the law
One of Carter’s teammates, Devin Willock, and Chandler Lecroy, a member of the Georgia football staff, died in a car accident shortly after Georgia won the national championship.
Carter, 21, was charged with reckless driving and racing.
He posted a statement on Twitter which read, “I intend to return to Athens to respond to the misdemeanor charges against me and to ensure the full and accurate truth is presented. There is no doubt in my mind that when all the facts are out, I will be fully exonerated of any wrongdoing. »
Carter was booked at 11:33 p.m. and released on bail at 11:49 p.m. on March 1.
Will this affect each player’s draft stock?
I saw Miller scoff at points three through six in the upcoming NBA draft, and Carter was a contender for the first draft. If they end up being selected in these places even after the news about them is out, can we as a society admit that the pre-draft interview process is complete nonsense?
Don’t say you like a player character and need multiple interviews to find out if they’re the right choice, then recruit someone connected to a death. I’m not saying these players are guilty of wrongdoing or that they don’t deserve to play professionally – the legal process is still ongoing – but if that doesn’t give teams a break to draft them, I don’t know. what will be.
So many times have athletes seen their draft stock of what NFL teams have arbitrarily labeled “character issues” when they were undoubtedly less serious than what happened with these two- there. In 2016, many expected offensive lineman Laremy Tunsil to be a top three pick, but a video of him smoking weed through a bong attached to a gas mask was tweeted from his account 10 minutes before the draft in what Tunsil’s agent claimed was the result of his hacked account. He was drafted 13th, which, assuming he would have been drafted third if the video hadn’t been tweeted, cost him around $13 million.
Whatever your opinion on smoking weed (something that will probably be legal everywhere in the United States before long), you must surely admit that smoking is not as bad as anything that leads to someone’s death.
A text exchange in which Tunsil asked Ole Miss’ assistant athletic director for a payment he could use for rent and pay his mother’s $305 electric bill. My God… How does this guy sleep at night?
Carter has a “really good interview” at the NFL Combine
At this year’s NFL combine, they reportedly held games of mini-golf and darts to test their competitiveness. If someone’s draft stock drops because they didn’t care enough about mini golf but Carter’s stock doesn’t drop after being charged with a crime, then can we finally admit that these interviews are nonsense?
NFL teams are allowed 45 formal 18-minute interviews with prospects at the combine, which was recently reduced from 60. All of this in an effort to ensure that the players they pick up are all upstanding citizens and the right fit for their team, as if someone warm personality is actually going to help their stock project.
Jonathan Gannon, the new head coach of the Arizona Cardinals, who have the third pick, said they had a “very good interview” with Carter. How good is this? Was this the best interview anyone had ever had in any setting? Otherwise, how can you ignore his current legal issues?
Along with Lecroy, Carter reportedly “drove their vehicles in a manner consistent with racing” prior to the crash.
“Evidence showed that the two vehicles changed lanes, entered the center turn lane, entered opposing lanes of traffic, passed other motorists and drove at high speeds, in an apparent attempt to distance”, the police statement said.
Carter denied the race to the officer, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
In September last year, Carter was pulled over for driving 89mph when the speed limit was 45, suggesting a pattern of this behavior.
Body camera footage shows the arresting officer telling him, “Your break is that you’re not going to jail. It’s your break. Because that would make all kinds of news, wouldn’t it? Carter was fined $1,013. It was close. It almost made the news.
As for Miller, during the pregame introduction against Arkansas, he opted to go ahead with a “tapped” entry as it was announced to the crowd.
It was, to say the least, extremely deaf.
I’m not saying that Miller and Carter necessarily deserve to be drafted lower than they would have been – there could be nuances in these situations that we just don’t see – but it looks like there is a double standard. For most players, teams will try to find a reason to move them lower on their draft boards, but for true elite talent, they will excuse any behavior.