http://www.dispatch.com/live/conten...larett-granted-early-release-from-prison.html Maurice Clarett, the former Ohio State running back who ran afoul of the law, was able to move from a prison cell to a dormitory step-down center after a Franklin County judge granted his request for early release yesterday. A buff Clarett, 26, told Common Pleas Judge David W. Fais that he wants to finish his college education - possibly at Ohio State - and has a long-term plan of running a fitness center for geriatric clients. And football would be OK, too, if the opportunity arises, Clarett said. Clarett was brought to Columbus from the Toledo Correctional Institution this week. He had applied in February for judicial release from the same judge who sentenced him to 71/2 years in prison in September 2006 for robbery and weapons convictions. "I'm humbled as you make this consideration," Clarett told Fais. "I've made incredible progress since I've been incarcerated." Pushed by Fais to give the most important lesson he learned in prison, Clarett said, "Developing the character that will help me become a great father and contribute to society." While incarcerated, he missed the birth of a daughter to his girlfriend, Ashley Evans of Youngstown, who attended yesterday's hearing with Clarett's mother, Michelle. "I continue to be proud of Maurice," Michelle Clarett said. "My hope, of course, is that the sky's the limit with him, but I want him to grow as a person." Fais agreed to release Clarett to the community-based correctional facility on Alum Creek Drive. He will be there for four to six months, depending on his behavior. He will not be permitted to leave without prior approval from Fais. Sometimes, prisoners are allowed to leave for work during the day. Clarett does not have a job, but will take classes and participate in programs while he's there. After his release, he will be on intensive probation for five years. During that period, he is prohibited from having guns or violating the law, he must maintain a job, have no contact with his prior victims and remain in Franklin County. He had hoped to return to the Youngstown area sooner, his family said. "I know there will be progress," Fais said. "Good luck, Mr. Clarett." Without the early release, Clarett would not have been paroled until February 2014. In earlier applications for release and in a failed attempt at a governor's pardon, Clarett's attorneys had said he might pursue a career as a public speaker or an arena league football player. While in prison, Clarett wrote occasional blogs about his time behind bars. He taught personal-fitness classes and organized a flag-football team, according to defense attorney Michael Hoague. His institutional record was not shared with the media, but Hoague said it contained "excellent" marks for categories such as work history, program attendance and attitude. "It's bittersweet for him because he's been released from prison, but he is still incarcerated," Hoague said. "The judge has basically shaved four years off his prison sentence to give him an opportunity to move on with his life." Clarett had a stellar year as a freshman running back for Ohio State and helped lead the Buckeyes to a national championship in a double-overtime win against the University of Miami on Jan.1,2003. He attempted to enter the NFL as a sophomore, but lost a court fight to do so. Although he was drafted by the Denver Broncos in 2005, he walked out of training camp and hasn't played organized football since. His convictions stemmed from a chain of events that began on Jan.1,2006, when he robbed a couple at gunpoint outside a Downtown bar and ended on Aug.9,2006, when he was arrested wearing a bulletproof vest and carrying four guns and a hatchet in his car. That arrest occurred during a high-speed chase with police, who found Clarett less than a mile from the home of one of his robbery victims. bcadwallader@dispatch.com [YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-UvO6tS0II[/YOUTUBE] Wonder if this guy can still contribute?
Oh man I remember Maurice Clarett.. haven't heard his name in a few years. The guy fell in with the wrong crowd, got himself into debt, got a whole lot of really, really bad advice, and just made bad decision after bad decision. Too bad, he's a great athlete, but he didn't have good people surrounding him to give him advice.
He can't leave Franklin County for 5 years, so unless a UFL team pops up there and agrees to play every single game there, I doubt it.
So he robbed people at gunpoint, and jtrain wonders if he can still play football? I just hope he has changed his ways, or he may kill someone with all those guns next time.
Fell in with a bad crowd? He is nuttier than squirrel turds. When they caught him he was carrying 4 guns and a hatchet. Something is not right with him upstairs.
That may be true, but after college, when he wasn't eligable to be drafted, he moved to California and started being supported by an Israeli mob. They gave him cash, a BMW, a house in malibu... And in return he was going to give them 60% of his rookie contract. He was living the life of a super star without even signing with the NFL yet, without having made a dollar... When he didn't get signed by any NFL team, those people came after him. He and his family were being threatened. I almost feel bad for him... he didn't have enough sense to know what the hell he was doing, and he apparently didn't have anybody in his life to steer him in the right direction, tell him to stay in school, and give him some guidance as far as who to associate with. Sure, we take a lot of that for granted... but a lot of us had some good influences in our life. He may be part-crazy, but he also had a lot of people riding him and hoping to cash in.
Yah, lame; but he'll always be the steal of the draft! Shoot me, but I'll always feel bad for the guy. Granted he made hideous choices, but it's still really sad.
i knew he made some very very bad decisions but didnt realize it was to that point. we often do not put ourselves in the shoes of others, it is very hard to understand what some people go through if you have never been through it or watched someone go through it first hand. so we sit here and criticize and make judgements.
I think he'd consider a rotting corpse if it has been dead les than 2 years and performed well within 4 season of that.
jtrain's thought process: "Hmmm, what dumb shit can I throw out there in an attempt to annoy people for my own amusement??"
Clarett taking classes at Ohio State http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=5412090 COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Ohio State University says former football star Maurice Clarett has been granted re-entry to pursue his degree after he spent more than three years in prison. Ohio State spokesman Jim Lynch says in a statement that Clarett started classes on Monday after he was readmitted by the College of Education and Human Ecology, where he was originally enrolled. Clarett says in a statement that it is a "surreal feeling to be back at Ohio State" and that he doesn't want to be a "distraction or nuisance" to the football team or other students. Clarett led the Buckeyes to the 2002 national championship in his only college season. He pleaded guilty in 2006 to aggravated robbery and carrying a concealed weapon, and served 3½ years in a Toledo prison, where he took college-credit courses.
