 |
 |
By Zach Thomas
Arizona Daily Wildcat
November 8, 1996
A UA offensive lineman could have been arrested after arriving in Oregon when the Wildcats play the Ducks tomorrow.Instead, Frank Middleton Jr. will answer to assault charges today in a Corvallis, Ore., court, just one day before the game. The plea and sentencing hearing is scheduled for 11:30 a.m.
"He's going to make the trip," said Tom Duddleston, sports information director at the University of Arizona.
Oregon police sought Middleton after a Nov. 4, 1995, incident in which he allegedly hit Oregon State University mascot Benny the Beaver, who was played by a female OSU student, during a touchdown celebration in Corvallis.
"It is likely if the state police knew he was going to be in the state that they would serve the warrant," Pete Sandrock, Benton County, Ore., district attorney, said in March.
The fourth-degree misdemeanor assault warrant, issued Feb. 9, is valid only in Oregon.
Detective Sgt. Salvatore Celi of the University of Arizona Police Department said he interviewed Middleton Dec. 11 about the incident. Middleton did not deny the allegations and said he did not intentionally hit the mascot, Celi said.
Neither Middleton nor the Oregon prosecutor handling the case returned phone calls yesterday.
|
|
|