Correction: Keith Fitzhugh
Yesterday, I mentioned the “Starkville Six” incident where new Jets safety Keith Fitzhugh was one of the six Mississippi State players suspended from the team after a simple assault charge on an off-duty cop.
Fitzhugh’s representatives contacted us to point out the following:
His record was expunged for the incident and he was the only one of the six to have the court give him such expungement.
Other than this brush with the law, I have heard nothing but good things about Fitzhugh’s character and dedication, so it is especially pleasing to hear that he was not involved in any wrongdoing. We are happy to make this correction (although we were not asked to do so) and wish Fitzhugh all the best as he strives to make the team.
As I alluded to in my article, I see Fitzhugh as having a good chance to make a positive impact and look forward to seeing him compete for playing time in camp.
4 Responses to Correction: Keith Fitzhugh
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Andrew says:
The fact that he had the record expunged requires no correction and really means nothing in connection with what was written on the blog. if the charges were dropped or if he was found not guilty then you might want to correct that. but if he paid a fine and was given a six month suspended sentence then what does it matter? as for him being the only one who had their record expunged, the question to ask his rep is if any of the other defendants tried to get their records expunged as well. just because there was an expungement doesn’t mean he didn’t do the crime.
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DSmizzle says:
Yeah I don’t practice criminal law but people come to me for referrals so I’m aware of some of the general ins and outs.
In New York, this sounds like what’s known as an A.C.O.D. Your charges are held in limbo for a set period of time and if that time expires without further incident, the charges go away. If you even get charged with a new crime, you get full-blown charges on the old crime and the new one and they move forward on both.
Its not as serious as probation and it could mean that he either (a) wasn’t really involved as much as the others, or (b) he didn’t have priors and they did and-or he actually hired a good defense lawyer and they didn’t.
That being said, I’m all for allowing people second chances and wakeup calls. Some people screw up once and get their heads out their asses and some will never learn. Hopefully he’s a good kid. One brush with the law that will be wiped off your record doesn’t automatically mean otherwise.
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dsmizzle, i’m not a lawyer but it is not the same as an a.c.o.d.. it just means that he was able to get a lawyer to go into court for him and essentially have the record sealed so that if anyone went to the courthouse or the police station looking for the records they would no longer exist. unfortunately for him and his rep. you can’t get expunged from a newspaper or google.
Can’t help picturing Dan Aykrowd aka Austin Milbarge yelling “Fitz-Hume! Fitz-Hume” when I see this guys name! LOL