BY JANICE MORSE
The Cincinnati Enquirer
An 18-year-old high school athlete has pleaded guilty to two felony drug charges, but he's still playing football for the Princeton Vikings because no school or state rule says he cannot.
Wayne A. Brandon Jarrettis to be sentenced Oct. 15 for possessing crack cocaine and selling it to an undercover Hamilton police officer for $20. The offenses, to which he pleaded guilty last month in Butler County Common Pleas Court, allegedly occurred while he was 17.
A day after his sentencing, Princeton is to host Lakota East.
"He was a kid. Kids make mistakes," Mr. Jarrett's mother, Carmen Dillingham of Sharonville, said Tuesday. "My son is on the right road now. He has got his head on straight now."
Ms. Dillingham said her 6-foot, 295-pound son has been a leading Vikings defensive player for the past three games. And she says his scholastic performance has improved this school year after he moved to the Princeton district from Hamilton, where he was a starter on the Big Blue football team.
Princeton Athletic Director Scott Kaufman said neither his school district nor the Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) has a rule that would make Mr. Jarrett ineligible to play.
"He's a member on the team, and he's eligible under all the requirements we have," he said. "We simply follow all the policies we have from our (school) board and the OHSAA."
OHSAA Assistant Commissioner Blair Irvin confirmed that his organization has no regulation that would apply in such a situation. Mr. Irvin said he has never heard of a student athlete in a similar circumstance, but "that doesn't mean it hasn't happened."
Princeton Coach Bryan Deal could not be reached for comment. The charges to which Mr. Jarrett pleaded guilty stemmed from a Jan. 2 incident, court records show. The case was first filed in juvenile court because Mr. Jarrett was 17 at the time of the alleged offense. In June, it was transferred to adult court. Mr. Jarrett turned 18 on May 24.
Mr. Jarrett has been free on 10 percent of a $5,000 bond since then. He was indicted in August for possession of crack cocaine and trafficking in cocaine.
The possession charge was a fifth-degree felony. The trafficking charge was a more serious fourth-degree felony, records say, because the sale was at Ludlow and 11th streets in Hamilton, within 1,000 feet of Jefferson Elementary School. The trafficking charge later was reduced to a fifth-degree felony in exchange for Mr. Jarrett's guilty plea to both charges.
The maximum sentence on each charge is 12 months and a $2,500 fine, along with a driver's license suspension of six months to five years.
Mr. Jarrett's lawyer, Jonathan N. Fox of Hamilton, notes that probation is a possible punishment for the charges. He declined to comment further.
Common Pleas Judge Anthony Valen is to sentence Mr. Jarrett.
Mr. Jarrett's former coach at Hamilton High School, Ed Mignery, kicked the fullback off the team after Christmas break for unspecified conduct reasons. On Tuesday, after being told of the drug convictions, he wondered why Mr. Jarrett still was playing football at Princeton.
"We would not allow a student to play after conviction on a felony count. That would be an automatic dismissal from our team," Mr. Mignery said.
Although he could not cite a Hamilton school policy calling for such action, Mr. Mignery said he would definitely remove such a player from his team.
"I was surprised he was on the (Princeton) team, but that's up to them," he said.
