Adrian Arrington: Legally speaking

Wide Receiver Adrian Arrington (Jr./So. in 2006) finds himself unable to participate in Spring Practice because of "unspecified reasons" that may ultimately mean the end of his career at Michigan. It is widely believed that there has been some new infraction of team rules that, when combined with last year's legal issues, could lead to Arrington's demise with the Wolverines. Some fans have opined that the 2006 alleged domestic violence incident should not be held against Arrington as the case was dismissed. However, interestingly, the police incident report from that case indicated that the then 20-year-old Arrington had been drinking at a bar before getting into the car and driving away. No criminal charges were brought regarding any alcohol violations.

The date of the prior alleged incident was October 13, 2006 which was the week of the Penn State game. Arrington (d/o/b: 11-7-85) did not turn 21 until November 7, 2006. If he was consuming alcohol under the age of 21, he was in violation of MCL 436.1703. More importantly, if he then operated a motor vehicle as a person under 21 with a BAC of .02%-.07%, he was in violation of MCL 257.625 (6) . This offense is commonly referred to as "Drunk Driving by a Minor". If his BAC was .08% or above, he could of course have been charged with a violation of Operating While Intoxicated [MCL 257. 625 (1) ]. However, the police were not able to find Arrington that night and he avoided submitting to sobriety evaluations. Although the alcohol violations were not charged, they were not ignored by Coach Carr. In fact, in the grand scheme of things, the alleged drunk driving is more serious than what occurred during the disagreement over the keys that led to the domestic violence charge. Arrington was given a second chance last year after his scrape with the legal system and he knew that he needed to watch his step because he had no margin for error. If he has made another bad decision and it leads to the end of his career at Michigan, he has no one but himself to blame. At some point, each player has to make a decision regarding how he wants to conduct himself and lead his life. Michigan may not be the place for Adrian Arrington. If he wants to get back on the team, he has a lot to prove. Go Blue!