Michigan-Michigan State Postgame Festivities...

[Xanadu]

These shouldn't be felony charges give me a break you can't goad a group of people like that and not expect to be smacked. They didn't stomp him out that badly. Couple game suspension is all that warranted.

Trash take. It’s a felony the minute he swung the helmet. Nice job victim blaming, do you also ask if her skirt was too short?

 

[Xanadu]

1. MIchigan players went in the tunnel looking for trouble, and they found it. They instigated.
2. Fights happen in sports all the time. In hockey, it's literally part of the sport. Arbitrarily enforcing the law is not fair.
3. MSU players should've been suspended for 1 game for general involvement, 2 games for swinging a helmet.

Show the proof they instigated. Felony assault and battery and we’re blaming the victim with no evidence. It really doesn’t even matter if there was evidence that they instigated based on the outcome. But hey, bring us some evidence and we can talk.

 

[sdhall01]

Trash take. It’s a felony the minute he swung the helmet. Nice job victim blaming, do you also ask if her skirt was too short?

No. No it's not. It's misdemeanor assault and battery. He didn't stand over and beat him while he was on the ground. This was over charged.

 

[Xanadu]

No. No it's not. It's misdemeanor assault and battery. He didn't stand over and beat him while he was on the ground. This was over charged.

Watch the video again. The UM player was being held by an MSU player while another MSU player was swinging his helmet at him. It was absolutely not overcharged and will likely be the final charge unless there is a plea agreement. There is ample video evidence.

 

[sdhall01]

Watch the video again. The UM player was being held by an MSU player while another MSU player was swinging his helmet at him. It was absolutely not overcharged and will likely be the final charge unless there is a plea agreement. There is ample video evidence.

I'm not familiar with Michigan juries or Michigan law for that matter, but I feel pretty confident that nobody is ever going to convict him of felonious assault. Could it meet the definition of felonious assault? Maybe. Practically speaking it's football players fighting in a tunnel after a game. This is especially true given that the Michigan player is still wearing pads.

 

[FRANKIEFAN]

Trash take. It’s a felony the minute he swung the helmet. Nice job victim blaming, do you also ask if her skirt was too short?

You seriously comparing a victim of sexual assault to a poor winner football player directly challenging and goading their opponent into a physical altercation after a game?

I'd probably rather be hit with a helmet than punched.

Maybe the victim should have asked him to put his helmet on before he taunted him?

 

[W'boro'Cuse315]

I'd probably rather be hit with a helmet than punched.

Lol, really?

 

[CuseCPT]

Lol, really?

Yes really. Unlike fists, helmets are rounded, and are engineered to evenly distribute and absorb impacts. People die from punches, while not common, it happens. I've never heard of anyone dying from being bludgeoned with a football helmet.

It's all about physics. A well-placed punch is going to be directed into a smaller impact area, ie, the surface area of the knuckles. It's why punches shatter eye sockets, knock out teeth, and break noses and jaws with regularity.

I'm not saying it would tickle, but I'll take the helmet over a fist from a college football player all day.

 

[CuseCPT]

Show the proof they instigated. Felony assault and battery and we’re blaming the victim with no evidence. It really doesn’t even matter if there was evidence that they instigated based on the outcome. But hey, bring us some evidence and we can talk.

The evidence is the video on the second page. Instead of waiting for the MSU team to the leave the field, #1 goes skipping and strutting his way through Spartans, no doubt chirping the whole way. He was looking for trouble and he found it.

Bring me the elements of felony assault in Michigan (or anywhere) and tell me how this meets it. There's like one-half a$$ed helmet swing in the video.

Charging these young men with felonies is hideously unfair when this type of behavior is routinely tolerated in sports, and often celebrated.

 

[gmoney44]

1. MIchigan players went in the tunnel looking for trouble, and they found it. They instigated.
2. Fights happen in sports all the time. In hockey, it's literally part of the sport. Arbitrarily enforcing the law is not fair.
3. MSU players should've been suspended for 1 game for general involvement, 2 games for swinging a helmet.

I’m all for big mouth dip shytes getting put in their place but once you swing helmets or continue hitting when someone goes down is a bridge too far for me. I’m also not a fan of multiple people fighting one guy.

 

[CuseCPT]

I'm not saying the MSU players did nothing wrong. They took the bait and reacted. It's appropriate that they be punished in the way that athletes are punished for things like this. Suspension is appropriate. Potentially ruining these kids' futures over this is insane.

 

[kcsu]

Its a football altercation . We have become a joke. Give everyone a trophy then take the trophies away from the kids in the fight.
Seriously why is this bei g handled outside the two schools. Total joke

 

[tep624]

You seriously comparing a victim of sexual assault to a poor winner football player directly challenging and goading their opponent into a physical altercation after a game?

I'd probably rather be hit with a helmet than punched.

Maybe the victim should have asked him to put his helmet on before he taunted him?

You can’t have a logical conversation with someone who insults anyone else’s opinion that disagrees with them and lives in a world of false equivalence. Complete waste of time.

 

[CuseCPT]

A big fight broke between Mississippi State and Tulsa in the handshake line after their bowl game last year. Don't think that resulted in any criminal charges.

 

[javadoc]

You can’t have a logical conversation with someone who insults anyone else’s opinion that disagrees with them and lives in a world of false equivalence. Complete waste of time.

The folks arguing that it was no big deal and he deserved it should keep talking. It’s endlessly instructive, revolting, disheartening. But a necessary reminder.

 

[CuseCPT]

I will, the level of pearl clutching going on is crazy. Dude acted like a punk and got a little roughed up. People acting like he was minding his own business signing autographs in the parking lot for disabled kids and the MSU players stabbed him.

 

[qdawgg]

I will, the level of pearl clutching going on is crazy. Dude acted like a punk and got a little roughed up. People acting like he was minding his own business signing autographs in the parking lot for disabled kids and the MSU players stabbed him.

I hope you don’t have a job where you need to recount facts of events and people are relying on your judgement. Because I’m not sure you’ve said more than 10-20% of factual information yet. But you seemed pretty triggered by this event so the two things usually go hand in hand.

 

[CuseCPT]

I hope you don’t have a job where you need to recount facts of events and people are relying on your judgement. Because I’m not sure you’ve said more than 10-20% of factual information yet. But you seemed pretty triggered by this event so the two things usually go hand in hand.

Funny, I haven't been insulting people over this topic. Yet I'm the one that's triggered? Okay. I appreciate your concern trolling, though.

 

[Capt. Tuttle]

No. No it's not. It's misdemeanor assault and battery. He didn't stand over and beat him while he was on the ground. This was over charged.

Are you fully familiar with the Michigan statutes to say it’s over charged. Might be text book case.

 

[sdhall01]

Are you fully familiar with the Michigan statutes to say it’s over charged. Might be text book case.

Well, I read it. If I could choose an “other dangerous weapons” case to try as defense counsel, it would probably be this one.

There isn’t a helmet statute, so I figure they’re going to have to convince 12 people that a helmet is an other dangerous weapon capable of causing serious bodily injury and death by itself. Next, they’re going to have to convince 12 people that it qualifies as an other dangerous weapon when the person is wearing pads after playing a game where people get ejected at worst when they launch themselves and lead with their helmet.

Most importantly, you’re going to have to make a jury care enough about this set of facts to convict someone of a felony. I don’t think a jury would convict on that.

Put another way, I wouldn’t want to be the line prosecutor that has to deal with it. That’s just this man’s uneducated opinion though. It’s certainly not legal advice.

 

[CuseCPT]

I looked up Michigan statute. I think the prosecutor would have a very tough time arguing that video shows an assault to cause great bodily harm and that the helmet is a "dangerous weapon."

 

[sdhall01]

I looked up Michigan statute. I think the prosecutor would have a very tough time arguing that video shows an assault to cause great bodily harm and that the helmet is a "dangerous weapon."

I’d probably look into doing an out of state witness subpoena for someone in product development for the helmet’s manufacturer as an expert witness. I’m sure they’d love to testify in a criminal trial centered around their products being weapons.

I’d say that’d be prohibitively expensive, but I bet boosters would bank roll that to make a UM fan prosecutor look silly.

 

[sdhall01]

Are you fully familiar with the Michigan statutes to say it’s over charged. Might be text book case.

Also, to be fair to you, there is a text book case, it’s a hatchet. I imagine. I’m not familiar with anything other than the text of the statute, and I refuse to do more research to win an internet fight. Everyone’s guess is as good as mine.

 

[CuseCPT]

I’d probably look into doing an out of state witness subpoena for someone in product development for the helmet’s manufacturer as an expert witness. I’m sure they’d love to testify in a criminal trial centered around their products being weapons.

I’d say that’d be prohibitively expensive, but I bet boosters would bank roll that to make a UM fan prosecutor look silly.

Q: What are your helmets designed to do when they collide with something else?
A: Disperse and absorb impact forces.

No further questions your honor.