Micah Bradford charged with two felonies

truth219 · February 26, 2018, 04:58:20 PM

Wife just told me Micah got arrested saturday night for possession of weed.

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valpo04 · February 26, 2018, 05:15:32 PM

Valparaiso University basketball player Micah Bradford charged with two felonies

Valparaiso University basketball player Micah Bradford was arrested Saturday night on charges including possession of marijuana.

Bradford, of Bourbonnais, Illinois, and Nailah Bush, of Chicago, both 19, were taken into custody after a 9:12 p.m. call to an apartment in the 200 block of Sturdy Road in Valparaiso.

They face felony counts of obstruction of justice and maintaining a common nuisance, and a misdemeanor drug count, according to Valparaiso police.

http://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/porter/valparaiso-university-basketball-player-micah-bradford-charged-with-two-felonies/article_64ec9c2e-48ee-5c0b-b173-6e42dc8b941e.html

VU2014 · February 26, 2018, 05:24:45 PM

Who thinks he'll play in Arch Madness? I don't think so but who knows. The University can't wait to make a Friday night press release dump, because the game is on Thursday.

truth219 · February 26, 2018, 05:34:50 PM

hopefully he gets tossed off the team, enough losers

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VU2014 · February 26, 2018, 05:58:47 PM

Quote from: truth219 on February 26, 2018, 05:34:50 PM
hopefully he gets tossed off the team, enough losers

I've met Micah a few times and he seemed like a great kid. I don't think he's a bad kid or a loser. He just made a really dumb mistake. He's had 2 really tough seasons but by all accounts he's a work horse and gym rat, who puts in the work.

M · February 26, 2018, 06:09:52 PM

Should've been in the gym 🤷‍♂️

elephtheria47 · February 26, 2018, 06:26:09 PM

My big question is....why?

The game was on saturday, at drake, and at 2:00 cst. Game gets over about 4:15 and they fly back to Indiana. Around 9:30, a little over 5 hours after the end of the game, the police come knocking and he gets popped? He mustve been at it right after the team dispersed when they got back....

Chairback · February 26, 2018, 06:42:13 PM

It's time to move on from Micah. He struggling and way over his head on the court and apparently off the court too. I'm sure he's a good kid but Valpo or D1 basketball is not for him. He just needs to go.

I worry about if this status quo for our men's basketball program.

vu72 · February 26, 2018, 07:00:53 PM

Quote from: Chairback on February 26, 2018, 06:42:13 PM
It's time to move on from Micah. He struggling and way over his head on the court and apparently off the court too. I'm sure he's a good kid but Valpo or D1 basketball is not for him. He just needs to go.

I worry about if this status quo for our men's basketball program.

Obviously don't know where this all goes but I disagree on him being over his head--at least at the end of the season. Early on he was called on to shoot threes and when he started missing he lost all confidence, even on the line. To his credit, Matt changed his role to a distributor and he and Bakari both picked up their games. I think he will be very good as he continues to mature and his defense has always been solid. He has the speed and size to impact games. I hope he can get his act together.

VU2014 · February 26, 2018, 07:03:48 PM

It may be best for all parties to go their separate ways. I think he'd benefit from getting a fresh start somewhere else and benefit from a redshirt year to work on his game. Minutes will be tougher to come by next season.

wh · February 26, 2018, 07:32:02 PM

Am I the only one who didn't know "popped" means arrested? I had to find it in the urban dictionary. And to think I nearly went the entire day without learning something new.

justducky · February 26, 2018, 07:41:18 PM

Quote from: wh on February 26, 2018, 07:32:02 PMAm I the only one who didn't know "popped" means arrested?

Yes! Even from my position as a senior citizen, I have heard that term used for decades.

justducky · February 26, 2018, 07:56:28 PM

Quote from: vu72 on February 26, 2018, 07:00:53 PMObviously don't know where this all goes but I disagree on him being over his head--at least at the end of the season. Early on he was called on to shoot threes and when he started missing he lost all confidence, even on the line. To his credit, Matt changed his role to a distributor and he and Bakari both picked up their games. I think he will be very good as he continues to mature and his defense has always been solid.

Micah has his limitations but seems to be making slow but generally upward progress. He will never be a top shelf starter but if willing to stay and work (drug free) he could be a reliable end of bench contributor for an excellent ball club. It is up to him.

usc4valpo · February 27, 2018, 06:05:00 AM

Suspension, yes, but kicking someone off the team for pot possession is too harsh. The legality of pot is escalating and there are worse events going on. The happenings with the NCAA administration is far worse.

FieldGoodie05 · February 27, 2018, 07:08:48 AM

Quote from: usc4valpo on February 27, 2018, 06:05:00 AM
Suspension, yes, but kicking someone off the team for pot possession is too harsh. The legality of pot is escalating and there are worse events going on. The happenings with the NCAA administration is far worse.

I'm pro marijuana and even felt a cringe when I saw that's what Micah was busted for. It's silly how much more we react to weed vs alcohol indulgence. But I'd agree, the felony concept is the real indicator here.

I'm assuming this is what coach will react to considering how short a window he has to make a decision. Based on the HL tournament results of years prior, I'm guessing the team left for St Louis WELL in advance to get a shoot around 😜. Due process is important, big TBD.

bbtds · February 27, 2018, 07:10:39 AM

It really bothers me. Not only is it against the law whether we like it or not it is also against team rules and it has really hurt the team. Micah needs to be shown the door more for letting his team down at a very crucial time.

This must be done or Valpo opens itself up to student criticism of athletes getting an unfair advantage which has never been the true Valpo way like it mostly has been in other schools.

Just Sayin · February 27, 2018, 07:46:23 AM

Quote from: usc4valpo on February 27, 2018, 06:05:00 AM
Suspension, yes, but kicking someone off the team for pot possession is too harsh. The legality of pot is escalating and there are worse events going on. The happenings with the NCAA administration is far worse.

The law is the law regardless of whether you support marijuana. He broke it and he should not play or stay.

elephtheria47 · February 27, 2018, 07:56:27 AM

Allegedly. The kid has due process and an assumption of innocence. A quick drug test will show if he was using or not, and would be known by the game on thurs. Maybe thats what they are waiting on to make an anoouncement.

What happens if they do give a drug test, it comes back clean, and charges are eventually dismissed? Big difference between if he did test positive and is found guilty of a felony. We can't be judge and jury here.

valpo84 · February 27, 2018, 08:11:47 AM

If it was a misdemeanor weed possession charge, the bigger question is what did he do to get felony counts of obstruction of justice AND a "common nuisance."

usc4valpo · February 27, 2018, 08:29:36 AM

This country has bigger problems than marijuana possession.

That being said, he needs to be suspended, but not kicked out of school.

valpo95 · February 27, 2018, 08:34:43 AM

In reading the article, the foolish thing about this that if Bradford opens the door when the police knock, then the biggest charge is a misdemeanor drug charge. Getting caught smoking marijuana is a dumb decision, yet at their age is not the end of the world. (Barack Obama and Al Gore among others have had pretty successful careers even after admitting they smoked pot in their youth.) However, the felony charges escalate this to another level, and if convicted, probably ends his career at Valpo.

vuny98 · February 27, 2018, 09:14:22 AM

Quote from: valpo95 on February 27, 2018, 08:34:43 AMIn reading the article, the foolish thing about this that if Bradford opens the door when the police knock, then the biggest charge is a misdemeanor drug charge. Getting caught smoking marijuana is a dumb decision, yet at their age is not the end of the world. (Barack Obama and Al Gore among others have had pretty successful careers even after admitting they smoked pot in their youth.) However, the felony charges escalate this to another level, and if convicted, probably ends his career at Valpo.

Agree. The real problem here is not the pot smoking in his apartment at night (yes illegal, no I don't agree with it, but to pretend that's not common among college kids is fooling yourself). The problem seems to be not handling the situation with the cops appropriately. We will see if those charges stick. There have been numerous examples over the years of Valpo PD being over zealous in situations like this. But if he really did cause major issues that warrant two felony charges, then that is the problem and it is a big problem.

agibson · February 27, 2018, 09:21:33 AM

Quote from: valpo84 on February 27, 2018, 08:11:47 AM
If it was a misdemeanor weed possession charge, the bigger question is what did he do to get felony counts of obstruction of justice AND a "common nuisance."

A little to my surprise, while the written VU rules spend quite a bit of text distinguishing Category I (eg felony) and Category II (eg misdemeanor) violations the minimum penalty for both is the same: two games for basketball.

Presumably the more serious sanctions (including expulsion etc) become more likely for Cat I. But they're not automatic.

With due process, appeals, etc. it may be in large part up to the student whether they quickly serve an official sentence.

I guess the coaching staff then has discretion as to whether he plays.

If he didn't miss the ride to St. Louis (court date? Maybe no problem?), he could be going...

vu72 · February 27, 2018, 09:22:42 AM

Quote from: wh on February 26, 2018, 07:32:02 PM
Am I the only one who didn't know "popped" means arrested? I had to find it in the urban dictionary. And to think I nearly went the entire day without learning something new.

Nope.

agibson · February 27, 2018, 09:25:32 AM

Quote from: vuny98 on February 27, 2018, 09:14:22 AMThe problem seems to be not handling the situation with the cops appropriately.

This is a tough one for me. Is it clear what "appropriate" means here?

It's far from clear to me that you let the police search your apartment without a warrant. It's far from clear to me that you should admit guilt to an officer on the scene. Trying to make MJ vanish? Maybe that's not good...

You may annoy the cops less if you let them in and admit guilt for the minor offense, instead of making them get the warrant etc. But, is that really what you *should* do?