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Well here we go again!

More Texas Longhorns arrested.

I am sure it is all just a huge "misunderstanding" once again.

Ha Ha Ha

Roll out the spin doctors and defense attorneys to brush it all under the carpet.

They will probably "suspend" him once the season is over.....now that would be a severe punishment wouldn't it?

It's funny this incident happened before the OU game....but oh no it couldn't come out in the public eye until after the big OU game.

Shame on you Mack Brown for coddling these crimminal Longhorns!


UT's Benson charged with trespassing
Junior turns himself in, is released on $10,000 bond for misdemeanor


10:59 PM CDT on Tuesday, October 21, 2003

The Dallas Morning News - By Chip Brown


AUSTIN – Texas running back Cedric Benson was charged Tuesday with criminal trespassing, a misdemeanor, after allegedly forcing entry into a south Austin apartment, Austin police said.

The incident came four days before the Texas-Oklahoma football game in a failed attempt to find a plasma television he reported stolen a year ago.

Benson, 20, who faces up to a year in jail and/or a $4,000 fine if convicted , was joined by his attorney, Brian Carney of Midland, as he turned himself in Tuesday afternoon at the Travis County Justice Complex. Benson, who didn't comment, was released on a $10,000 bond for the Class A misdemeanor charge, which was filed in Travis County Municipal Court.

"Cedric's a good kid who's having to turn things over to his lawyers to figure everything out," Carney said. "I do know he had a burglary occur at his apartment. Some property was stolen and nothing came of the investigation."

Texas football coach Mack Brown said Benson is innocent until proven guilty, adding that he stands behind Benson 100 percent.

"I think we ought to talk about this at the end, after the law has taken its course, and see where we are," Brown said. "We believe in Cedric. He's been a good young man for us, and we're going to stand behind him fully."

Brown said Benson, who missed practice Tuesday while dealing with his legal situation, wouldn't start Saturday against Baylor because he has caused a distraction for the football team this week. Brown said he would decide later in the week if Benson would play at all.

According to Lt. Curtis Kornfuehrer of the Austin Police Department, Benson and three unidentified men kicked in the apartment door of Amanda Lee Lucas about 8 p.m. on Oct. 7. Kornfuehrer said Lucas' roommate is the girlfriend of a suspect in a burglary of Benson's apartment in November 2002. Benson reported a plasma television and another TV as well as a Sony PlayStation game, clothing and stereo speakers stolen from his apartment at that time.

According to court documents filed Tuesday, Lucas was roused from sleep by the voices of four men outside her door, which was locked with a deadbolt. She looked through a peephole and then backed away from the door before it was kicked in.

"A man she later identified as Cedric Benson inquired about a plasma television," Kornfuehrer said. "She said it wasn't there. But he and the three men looked through the apartment before leaving."

Kornfuehrer said Lucas got the license plate number off Benson's Cadillac Escalade and then identified Benson in a photo lineup on Oct. 17. None of the other men have been charged in the case. Kornfuehrer said none of the other men will likely be charged unless Benson identifies them.

Benson is a professional baseball player in the Los Angeles Dodgers' organization who received a $125,000 signing bonus after being selected in the 12th round of the major league draft in 2001.

Benson had three misdemeanor charges filed against him and dropped in the spring of 2002, after police were called to a Midland apartment because of a loud noise complaint. Inside the apartment, police found Benson, who was visiting the apartment, with a female companion, along with alcohol, a small amount of marijuana and drug paraphernalia.

Benson, a junior at UT, has rushed for 498 yards and 10 touchdowns this season.

DallasNews

<small>[ 10-22-2003, 05:44 AM: Message edited by: VarsityShop ]</small>

Does anyone other than me wonder how Mr. Benson was able to acquire a plasma TV. I make a very good living but have as yet been unable to work one into my budget, and they are just now starting to come down in price from the past few years. I guess it was just a going away gift from his folks.

As an edit: I missed the professional baseball reference in my first reading ao I guess the tv and the Cadillac could actually be legit. Sorry that I am so skeptical when it comes to other schools never being questioned for recruiting irregularities.

<small>[ 10-22-2003, 05:59 AM: Message edited by: mrydel ]</small>

I can hear the judge sentencing him now:

"No - No Cedric, now say you are sorry."
"Do you promise to never do it again?"
"If so you are free to go."

"I think we ought to talk about this at the end, after the law has taken its course, and see where we are"..meaning..AFTER the season is over I'll take a look at this latest charge against him and decide how light to go on him.

And they criticize the Ponies...laughable

Good point, ArkPony - I imagine the legal system will run its course after the season, and probably after spring ball is over, so he can work on .... whatever it is he works on down there. If Coach Brown hears that Benson's really guilty, I bet you see him have a sudden revelation that baseball is his real calling, and that he wants to leave Austin and go hit curveballs full-time. Coach Brown will pat him on the back, tell everyone what a swell kid he is .... and whisper in his ear that he'd better never wear any UT stuff when he's in public.

All I know is that watching TV is important to this kid. Remember when he was a freshman, and the Morning News did a front-page exposé on the arrival of this guy in Austin? We were hit with a front-page photo (front page of the sports section) of Benson moving into his dorm -- a TV about the size of an SUV. Then, on the inside, they gave us another picture .... of him moving a TV around in his room. With TV-watching such a high priority in his life, how does he make time for football?

(Bonus question: how many TVs do you think he has in that Escalade? I'm setting the over/under at 3.)

My guess is he was able to afford it from the six figure signing bonus he got from the LA Dodgers. He plays summer ball for them. He is not even a "scholarship" player.

Judge Arkpony:

How about coming out of retirement and making a ruling on this one!!!

And why do you think Mack will be back to make a ruling? Benson needs to learn that you have to produce against teams that are in the top 25 to be able to get away with crimes at UT!!!! He'll be self destructing in baseball a year from now.

Mrydel- I remember Texas alumnus Judge who himself began an official inquiry into How SMU signed a linebacker the longhorns wanted. He called his own witnesses etc. Maybe I should come out of retirement and begin a purge of the Texas football system. Hmmmmmm....

isn't that trespassing charge the lesser charge he could have gotten? What about breaking and entering, destroying property? Don't think for a frikin second that turning himself in before the Baylor game wasn't planned out! This girl will get a nice little check to drop charges and make it all go away AGAIN!!! Man I hate those sorry son of a guns at TU!!! They remind me of some large untouchable corrupt corporation!

<small>[ 10-22-2003, 05:15 PM: Message edited by: ALEX LIFESON ]</small>

I expect the NCAA will begin looking into SMU's connection to Benson any day now. Surely the Longhorn was corrupted by outside source.

Originally posted by SWCghost:
I expect the NCAA will begin looking into SMU's connection to Benson any day now. Surely the Longhorn was corrupted by outside source.

Ha - interesting perspective! You're right - somehow it's got to be our fault, right?

I have always believed that our legal system is designed to protect the innocent while fairly administering justice. In this case it would appear that the legal system is protecting the innocent Longhorns while fairly administrating justice to another entity.

I wish just once the Horns would actually pay for the crimes they commit and rules they violate.

Ponyte:

A short while before you were playing, I was living in Austin. Some big time running back was being recruited by UT and was in a local western wear store with an assistant coach. The recruit put on an expensive pair of cowboy boots and walked out of the store. When he was stopped for shop lifting, the assitant coach said that the player had accidently forgotten he had the boots on, and paid the store for the boots. Later when SMU was being investigated I wrote David Berst of the NCAA and asked why UT was not investigated for this incident. He very politely stated that the player was no longer an athlete at UT so it did not matter that the incident had occured since the athlete could not be punished directly. Subsequently a couple of years later UT was investigated for another infraction, found guilty, and given a slap on the wrist with no sanctions. When I read the fine print of the findings, they included the cowboy boot incident in order that it would never be able to arise again. There has never been any justice in the manner in which the Big Boys are investigagted and the way that SMU has been investigated. After the DP was issued, I wrote Berst again and asked why the double standard and he wrote back at length how UT's infractions were not in any way approaching the severity of SMU, and very rudely chastised me for even insinuating that HIS office would show favortism. Never have I seen the fact that the player was no longer with the team make a difference in the decision to investigate. I have witnessed abuses at SMU, but I have also witnessed and been told first hand of abuses at Arkansas, Texas, Rice, and A&M and other than some minor probations, never seen the enthusiasm shown for investigating and punishing SMU.

As my old Constitutional law professor once said to a law student who asked about justice and fairness. "Young man, you're in the wrong building, the theology school is down the street."