Athens police: UGA players cleared in taxi incident
Athens-Clarke County police Monday cleared the Georgia football team of involvement in an alleged March 28 attack on a married couple in an Athens taxi.
Police said in a statement that one football player was in the vehicle, “but the investigation revealed that he acted as a peacemaker and tried to calm the situation.”
The suspects in the case “have been identified as residents of Heard County,” police said. Arrest warrants are pending and further information will be released after they are issued, police said.
Police did not identify the player they said acted as peacemaker.
The incident has been under investigation since March 30, when the married couple filed a police report. That report stated that the couple was taking a taxi van home around 2 a.m. when the driver stopped to pick up four males in downtown Athens – “all of whom were UGA football players, according to the [male victim].” He told police that the men cursed and threatened him and his wife and that one of the four “slapped or punched” them in the back of their heads, according to the report.
Georgia’s football team did not practice Monday, and through a spokesman coach Mark Richt declined to comment immediately on the police statement clearing players of involvement. Richt might comment on the matter Tuesday, the spokesman said.
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249 comments Add your comment
Pi$$onaDAWG
April 5th, 2010
4:27 pm
“My child ain’t bad the other people he was with are the trouble makers.” Look I am glad a player is not in trouble but his PUNK friend will get him in trouble if he don’t drop them. This guy Mike VICK had the same problem! “It was a bad group he was hanging with!” Get away kid and read a book. Are his bro on the UGA recruit list? More problems in the UGA Future.
An Attorney
April 5th, 2010
4:27 pm
Now we can sue for slander!!!!!!
Georgia Football Players Cleared in Athens Taxi Cab Incident
April 5th, 2010
4:28 pm
[...] have been or will be charged in connection with an incident in an Athens taxi cab on March 28, the AJC is reporting. Four men, identified by the victim as UGA football players, allegedly threatened and [...]
Urban Meyer
April 5th, 2010
4:29 pm
Please don’t mention all the many thugs and arrests we have with our Florida Gators (which in fact usually are felonies) because I will have to whine and cry and have a temper tantrum!!!
Nick Saban
April 5th, 2010
4:30 pm
Cry all you want Urban but my numerous felonious thugs can whip yours!
Go ‘Bama!!! (and get off NCAA probation!)
Minnesota Dawg
April 5th, 2010
4:31 pm
Yellow Jacket man, no it isn’t. I grew up in Heard County. My grandmother live right where the new school is on Main Street. It’s DAWG Country!
The Truth Hurts
April 5th, 2010
4:31 pm
I got in a fight at 2 AM in a cab when I was in college in Athens. If you ever saw me, you’d know the term “thug” hardly applies.
Dawg Stephen
April 5th, 2010
4:32 pm
Wait!!! can you post that again?? THE PLAYERS ARE INNOCENT??? DID I HEAR THAT RIGHT??
Tonight for supper children, we will be having crow.
Just glad it wasnt a gator, or you would really have gotten some entertainment from Urban’s speech.
“You’re a BAD Guy man..A BAAAD GUY”
jw
April 5th, 2010
4:32 pm
Bunch of tools!
Knoxville
April 5th, 2010
4:33 pm
So what! Our football player thugs at UT in Knoxville rob convenience stores! Rocky Top!!!!
Heard County
April 5th, 2010
4:34 pm
Go Jackets!!!! Sting ‘em! Bzzzzzzzzzzz!
Pi$$onaDAWG
April 5th, 2010
4:34 pm
Leave the accusers alone. 2,679 African Americans enrolled in UGA. 1/2 are women. the 4 men were football players just not all were at UGA YET. A DAWG was in the middle of it. The BROS were UNDERAGE and drinking. No!! NO! the UGA player was not Drinking just all his underage friends. UGA didn’t dodge a bullet! LEGALE problems abound in this whole situation.
Legend of Len Barker
April 5th, 2010
4:35 pm
There are three Heard Countians in Athens?
I’m from a similarly pathetic Georgia county with three towns the same size as Centralhatchee.
dawgster
April 5th, 2010
4:36 pm
Lets see if the AJC will give as much attention to the clearing of these ballplayers as they do when they are quick to convict them by their slanted articles they throw out there…I know, there response is, “just reporting the news”, thats fine, but give equal acknowledgement when you get it wrong….
Debbie Downer
April 5th, 2010
4:36 pm
Typical cover up.
Minnesota Dawg
April 5th, 2010
4:39 pm
Heard County has improved over the years. They didn’t start a football program till the early 70’s. They now are competing pretty good. That was when Hogansville always won the division. It was single A football for a while.
Cherokee
April 5th, 2010
4:39 pm
Debbie Downer….where is the cover up?
Minnesota Dawg
April 5th, 2010
4:41 pm
Heard County only had one red light in the whole county when I was growing up. Everyone in Franklin knew each other. I have good memories growing up there.
Frank Lane
April 5th, 2010
4:41 pm
I am sorry a UGA player was there at all, but at least he acted appropriately. I join those that are sick and tired of the press jumping on everyone they can just because they happen to be a team, a fraternity, a golfer, an actor, etc.
If this report and blamed four students it would not have made the papers at all.
59bulldawg
April 5th, 2010
4:42 pm
Hope Richt will use this this incident as a teachable moment to point out how important their self-discipline and maturity is to team stability. Lord knows we have had too much immature behavior but he should also point out that UGA haters were standing ready to criticize the program in their rush to judgement . . . which I think emphasizes the need for them to mind their Ps and Qs at all times. Because of all the incidents in the past several years, Georgia football players are looked at differently and not always different in a good way. I’m sure Richt has drilled this into them many times over . . . that they represent the University of Georgia and should always be on their best behavior. Maybe that message is not getting through (in light of the kid we just kicked off the team and previous other problems). Maybe we need to be more selective in who we recruit. Maybe we need a stronger orientation to the dangers of Athens nightlife for athletes who have no self-control. I am thankful that this young man acted like he did but if the other knuckleheads in the taxi were his buds, then he needs to find better friends.
some guy
April 5th, 2010
4:43 pm
good that the player wasnt the one being a jackarse, but he was still hanging out with guys that were harassing random strangers. i dont think youre going to get liable for having a couple say they were harassed by football players, since he is indeed a football player and was part of the group doing the harassing. its not a stretch to assume they all were. kid needs to find some new friends.
Otto
April 5th, 2010
4:44 pm
Pi$$onaDAWG, It is nice to have a Barbie Dollon campus. Don’t be jealous.
TechMaster
April 5th, 2010
4:46 pm
With special rules for football players, UGA gets out of another crime for a starter—Richt pulls some strings and the police now say the only football player involved was just a “peacemaker!” Hilarious—even more so that anyone believes this BS at the University of Football, where they make the rules!!!!
Tom
April 5th, 2010
4:47 pm
Oh please…all the UGA apologists thankful this one incident doesn’t go on the long resume of arrests under March Richt. UGA is still a joke of a program when it comes to athletes getting in trouble. Joke of a football team too.
Dawg Stephen
April 5th, 2010
4:51 pm
THAT POST AT 4:51 IS WHY WE NEED USERNAMES AND REGISTRATION to post here…
AJC YOU STINK!!!
Big Smile
April 5th, 2010
4:53 pm
Dang, I guess the Techies will have to return the rings they surely made for their football team in celebration of the possible demise of UGA players.
dawgster
April 5th, 2010
4:54 pm
TechMaster, do you really believe the crap that you just posted…What strings did Coach Richt pull to get the police to actually lie about what really happened…Give the police the respect that they deserve and that they actually know a little more about this case than you do…To say something like you just said doesn’t even belong on here…Are you so full of hate that you believe that they would cover this up just because Coach Richt told them to..I have much more respect for our program and the police than to give any validation to your post….Find something else to entertain yourself with…
HanDAWG
April 5th, 2010
4:54 pm
Hey Saint Simons, If we are THUG U, why are you so in love with us? We treated y’all like frat house blind dates last year – per usual. When your great little Joe Hamilton was busted, where were you? http://www.bighairyblawg.com
Paul
April 5th, 2010
4:55 pm
Again… who cares? Black people said vile things to white people, but remember, only white people can be racist.
Without football and sports at UGA, how many black people would even attend the school?
http://stuffblackpeopledontlike.blogspot.com/2010/01/college-football-opiate-of-america.html
Delusional Dawg
April 5th, 2010
4:55 pm
Well I guess I’m not only delusional but a little dubious. Mark Richt, based on his comments a couple of days ago that he “wished” he could comment on what was determined, seemed to already be aware of the result. But it’s good to see that the comments are back open on the AJC now that the sun is shining and everythings cool again for the Dawgs.
GooseDawg
April 5th, 2010
4:55 pm
After years of these stories being true its great that this one isn’t! Maybe this is a sign of a good year to come. Go Dawgs!
Not buying it
April 5th, 2010
4:56 pm
Something is really fishy here. This investigation lingered a little too long. Why was this player out so late while putting himself in this situation. Peacemaker or instigator ? I bet its the later.
he's like a Fox
April 5th, 2010
4:56 pm
rejoice, rejoice….whats a nice guy like that hanging with trash for? I smell cover up, birds of a feather drink and hang together. the report didn’t say three mean guys and one really nice one.
Sad Richards
April 5th, 2010
4:59 pm
Dawg stevie……. Go find you a woman or a partner for life. Sheesh ….let it rest dude and go back to your wannabe blog you blind homer!
HanDAWG
April 5th, 2010
4:59 pm
I met this pretty boy ex-Tech player with a huge ring on and said, “You aren’t old enough to have played in 1990.” He answered, “These are from the Peach Bowl.” (a blowout loss to LSU after a once in a decade close win over UGA). STATE CHAMP = UGA. How long before Georgia State puts Tech in 3rd?
DawgsOnline » Georgia players cleared in taxi incident
April 5th, 2010
5:03 pm
[...] know now that the correct answer was heavy on number 3 with a small peppering of option number 2. According to the AJC’s Tim Tucker, no Georgia football player will be charged in the incident. There was one player among the four, [...]
Cherokee
April 5th, 2010
5:04 pm
Where does it say in the article the UGA player was with them? NO where does it say they were together. Maybe he got in the taxi at the same place, doesn’t mean they were together.More jumping the gun.
Barack Dawg
April 5th, 2010
5:06 pm
Enter your comments here
Help bail Mutt out of Jail
April 5th, 2010
5:08 pm
Why haven’t all you so called Die hard Dawg fans( band wagon mutt fans too) helped bail Robinson out of jail?
Dawglasville
April 5th, 2010
5:08 pm
Again, since 2001, who are all of the thug UGA players? No one has answered.
i love uga we awesome
April 5th, 2010
5:08 pm
likely story…
he's like a Fox
April 5th, 2010
5:09 pm
when did he intervene? After the whole thing was over and it was time to exit the van? Mr. Peace keeper didn’t stop them from delivering “SOME SLAPS TO THE HEAD”. What a joke,never heard the victims talk about the really nice baller who tried to intervene. DRINK RED COOLADE …drink masses drink
i love uga we awesome
April 5th, 2010
5:09 pm
we awesome, we not criminals!
Darkjuice2
April 5th, 2010
5:09 pm
Where does the article say the UGA player was black?
Kristen
April 5th, 2010
5:10 pm
@Goosedawg: if you’d actually gone to school in Athens you’d know that the taxi-vans actually pick up more than one group of people until they are full. Then they drive everyone to their destination one at a time. Just because the UGA player was in the van with the thugs doesn’t mean he knew them from Adam.
i love uga we awesome
April 5th, 2010
5:11 pm
no ways a uga player is thug…we got smart players only
Early of the Squidbillies
April 5th, 2010
5:13 pm
Like everything else at UGA, There is a cover up going on right now.
Cherokee
April 5th, 2010
5:14 pm
Looks like Saint Simmons is back
stw
April 5th, 2010
5:22 pm
Now where are a$$holes who wanted to put these thugs under the jail ? I thought so…
Urban Liar & Satan Sabin
April 5th, 2010
5:24 pm
So, how about telling us if the Ga player was hanging around the 3 scumbags fro heard Co?