Thanks for sharing! Warning to anyone else who doesn't catch this immediately: ESPN refers to two separate vehicles as "the jeep" in the article. I'm still trying to figure out if it is clear from context which is which throughout.
Totally unrelated to the specifics of this case, but this line made me giggle:
You don't say!Prosecutors and defense attorneys have presented conflicting interpretations of events that night.
If he was not a star basketball player he would currently be facing charges in pretty much every state in the country, since he furnished the gun. I’m not saying he would be convicted, that would depend on other facts such as full disclosure of all the texts messages between the guys that night. Also 3 or maybe 4 players at the shooting is pretty disturbing. But can’t let a murder get in the way of a good team.
What should they have done, in your opinion? The kid was not directly involved in anything related to the shooting. The gun was in his car when he drove to pick up his teammate. He did not own the gun, he did not hand deliver the gun, he did not block anyone in, and he did not pull the trigger. What should his punishment have been?
Now, I will agree that Oats and the administration did not respond well to questions and did not help diffuse the situation around Miller. But Miller was a kid caught in a very unfortunate situation.
As has been hashed out in detail above, based on the publicly-available information, there is not sufficient evidence to charge Brandon Miller with a crime. People are on better ground arguing Miller's participation in the basketball program doesn't need to be evaluated according to the same standards as the criminal justice system, which poses the question of what standards there should be to suspend a player.
Well, to be fair to the poster above, they said "in pretty much every state" so they perhaps acknowledge the fact that based on Alabama law, the evidence suggest Miller should not be charged with a crime. At least, that's my charitable interpretation but I'd probably also change "pretty much every" to simply "most."
The incident occurred in the state of Alabama though, so it could be argued that it's strange for that poster to suggest he'd be charged in another state if it happened there. Well, it didn't so Alabama law applies. Still, some could see the situation and response as unseemly even if doesn't rise to the level of a criminal charge.
Several present or recent Alabama players were at the scene of a murder. One is charged with murder. The murder weapon was in Brandon Miller's car, and he was asked to bring it to a former player. There was shooting, a woman was killed and B. Miller's car was hit twice. Oats brushed it off; Bama deleted all reference to the charged (former) player.
Gee, happens everywhere. All the players are legally entitled to the presumption of innocence, but I and others have no such obligation.
This is a tawdry mess, made worse by Alabama's apparent disinterest.
There's more. Duke's reaction to the LAX hoax, for example.
Hey DBR guy, you asked a question and got strong opinions. That's how it works.
Also, forgive us if we are a little salty today, but our favorite team just played their last game for the next eight months.
Not a good opportunity for soliciting super sensitive opinions and being unhappy with the answers.
No issue with the debate. I was honestly curious on why people held this opinion. I grew up an Alabama fan, football primarily, because my family is from there. I grew up in NC and became a Duke fan as I was getting into basketball in the late 80s, mostly over a shared disdain of anything UNC. I expected what I presume to be an educated fanbase to have a reasoned take on the Miller situation and not just parrot what the national media ran with from the beginning. I have been a bit surprised by the vitriol towards Alabama and Miller. I would argue that if Miller were not a star player, then no one would have any real inclination towards him being suspended or worse. The facts of the situation say that he was, at most, a patsy of sorts in that he was driving the car with the gun that was subsequently used to kill a young woman. Any other supposed involvement from Miller has been refuted with documented evidence. The fact that other players were there as well has no bearing except, possibly, a lack of judgment in general on being out that late in that part of T-town. As I said, the adults could have handled the discussion much better, but that does not reflect on Miller.
I, too, am a bit triggered by the loss today, but was genuinely wanting to engage in a discussion on the situation with a group that has no horse in the race, so to speak.