One of the biggest questions when it comes to the highly-publicized confrontation between Michigan State commitment Jayru Campbell and a Detroit Cass Tech High School security guard is why. Just why did the highly-rated 2015 quarterback prospect, as was shown on multiple videos shot from cell phones and posted to the Internet, body slam the security officer, leading to an arrest and some rather serious charges?
Wayne County (Mich.) Prosecutor Kym Worthy had a simple answer to one version of why: Campbell was asked to remove a hood from his head on multiple occasions, with the situation escalating exponentially from there. From the Detroit Free Press:The officer asked Campbell to remove his hood several times while he was inside the school, and when he refused, the officer told him to report to the office, prosecutors said.
Campbell is accused of becoming profane, picking up the officer and slamming him to the ground, according the prosecutor’s office.
At a press conference Tuesday afternoon, Worthy announced that Campbell has been charged with assault with intent to do great bodily harm and aggravated assault. The former is a felony, the latter a misdemeanor. The 23-year-old security guard involved in the in-school incident, Worthy said, suffered a “facial injury and an open wound to the head.”
The 17-year-old Campbell will be tried as an adult and arraigned on the charges later today.
The Free Press writes that "[t]he felony charge is punishable by up to 10 years in prison and a fine up to $5,000, and the misdemeanor count is punishable by up to one year behind bars and a fine up to $1,000.”
“The fact that the defendant is a talented high school football player does not change the facts of this case,” the prosecutor said. “It doesn’t matter who you are. What you do. How fast you can run. How far you can throw a football. The law applies to everyone.”
Rivals.com has given a four-star rating to Campbell, ranking him as the No. 9 dual-threat quarterback in the country for the Class of 2015. He also holds offers from Alabama, Notre Dame and Wisconsin, although the recruiting website refers to him as a “solid verbal” to the Spartans.
Campbell gave a non-binding verbal commitment to the Spartans in early August of last year.
What will happen to that commitment, given the serious legal road Campbell must still traverse, remains to be seen, although the Free Press did note the following:
(Photo credit: Rivals.com)