Will Yeatman (Photo provided)
Story Created:
Feb 28, 2008 at 7:24 PM EDT
Story Updated:
Feb 28, 2008 at 7:24 PM EDT
SOUTH BEND (AP) — Notre Dame tight end Will Yeatman, suspended indefinitely from the team following his arrest last month after allegedly driving drunk on a campus sidewalk, has agreed to plead guilty to reckless driving.
Prosecutors agreed under the deal signed Monday to dismiss a criminal recklessness charge, and the 19-year-old sophomore agreed to plead guilty to drunken driving and reckless driving. If he stays out of trouble for a year, the agreement calls for the state to move that the drunken driving charge also be dismissed.
The Associated Press left a message seeking comment Thursday at the office of Yeatman's attorney, Anthony Zappia. Yeatman, who is still enrolled at school, could not be reached for comment because there was no telephone listing for him.
The criminal recklessness charge was the most serious offense, carrying a maximum sentence of a year in jail. The drunken driving charge carries a maximum penalty of six months in jail and the reckless driving charge up to 60 days in jail. All the charges are misdemeanors.
Yeatman, who also was suspended indefinitely from the lacrosse team, was accused of driving a car on a campus sidewalk with his headlights off at 2:49 a.m. Jan. 28. According to a probable cause affidavit, he had a blood-alcohol content of 0.11 percent at the time. The legal limit in Indiana is 0.08.
The plea agreement also calls for Yeatman to have ignition interlock equipment installed in his car for six months. The device requires him to blow into the equipment to start his car. If he has alcohol on his breath, the car won't start.
He also will have to attend a session where victims or family members of victims of drunken driving crashes talk about how their lives have been affected by drunken drivers. He also will be subject to at least one drug test and possibly as many as three.
The plea agreement says that if Yeatman stays out of trouble, the prosecutor's office would request that he not face any further fines or penalties.
Football coach Charlie Weis was traveling Thursday and could not be reached for comment on Yeatman's status following the plea agreement. Earlier this month, Weis said he hoped Yeatman would play in the fall.
Yeatman played in all 12 games for the Irish last season and started three, making six catches for 37 yards. A strong blocker, Yeatman was expected to challenge for a starting spot next season with the graduation of starter John Carlson.
Saturday, Mar 1 at 9:13 PM Rat wrote ...
You should test the football players for prescription drug misuse too.....there seems to be a lot of that too.....esp. misuse of ADHD meds, but then again a lot of non-football players misuse it too.