Definetly an interesting day on the NDSU campus today, reaction has definetly been mixed on the news that eight of NDSU’s football team have been charged with voter fraud, Jeff and I get deeper into the story here and welcome your reaction as well.
Definetly an interesting day on the NDSU campus today, reaction has definetly been mixed on the news that eight of NDSU’s football team have been charged with voter fraud, Jeff and I get deeper into the story here and welcome your reaction as well.
Personally I think that I’ll reserve any judgement until I hear all the facts of the case. No reason to be down on the team or these players until we find out exactly what occurred.
That being said there is far too much speculative talk on the message boards and more importantly the radio. Thanks Dom and Jeff for sticking to the facts and withholdingnjudgementmuntil there is actual news to report.
Most of these players are not from North Dakota…why were they involved with a petition drive for a ballot?
Very disappointed that they put themselves in this position. Most of the players probably had no idea how serious what they are alleged to have done is.
Hopefully it works itself out in court.
I agree that this is horribly disappointing. However, how can a bunch of $9/hr temp workers be seemingly responsible the entire fraud? Someone above their pay grade either instructed them to do this or they were not properly trained.
Now, it seems that they were employed illegally, in ND you cannot offer incentives for more signatures. Appears the whole thing was bogus from the start. It may not matter what happened after the petitions were signed, they may have been phony from the beginning?
So when is Terra Strategies court date?
The way I see it Bohl and Taylor had 3 legitimate options:
1) Suspend them all indefinitely.
2) Boot them all from the team.
3) Suspend/dismiss no one and wait for the legal process to play out.
Suspending them for a game or two would’ve been nothing more than a hollow display to try to quell the “guilty until proven innocent” lynch mob crowd and I’m glad that decision wasn’t made.
My gut feeling is that by the time this is all said and done we’ll look back on this and wonder what all the fuss was about. However, we may look back on it and say that an indefinite suspension or dismissal was warranted. But Taylor and Bohl can’t see into the future any more than any of us can so I say they’re right to reserve judgement.
Does the veteran criminal lawyer that Jeff spoke with think there will be no jail time etc. because the actual legal charge, when it is filed, will be for a crime that is not a Class A misdemeanor? Does the veteran criminal lawyer find it odd that the AG named suspects or defendants before the State filed a Complaint in Court? Maybe that is commonplace, but it seems strange to make the accusation and name individuals before filing a paper in Court — it gives the State’s lawyers no wiggle room if they change their mind about something or someone while drafting their papers? Please make the Complaint and the specific charge available as soon as you have it. Thanks for your coverage.
First of all Bison, the petitioners hired a firm to get the signatures, and that firm hired these players to get signatures. I am quite certain they were paid by the signature.
Secondly Dom, this isn’t voter fraud. This is petition fraud. You in the press need to get it right or there is nothing credible in anything you say or write.
It is disappointing that intelligent young people could not think through the process and the possible ramifications that questionable judgement would bring to themselves, their team mates, and the university. We all have made mistakes in our lives; these have served as learning points along life’s road. Surely, this will be the case for these young men.
Are they really intelligent?
Williams was not academically eligible out of high school.
Pierre and Ojuri lost their academic eligibility and had to earn it back.
Rodgers, Gatlin and Boyd all went the JUCO route because they were not academically eligible after HS.
I don’t know how intelligent Colville and Shephard are, but I think you could make an argument that the other 6 are not that intelligent, given academic evidence and current circumstances.
There is smart in school and smart in life.
These college kids did not figure the cost of a defense attorney and the cost of court fines/imprisonment as they worked their $9.00/hour jobs. These college kids did not think of what this would look like on their job experience resumes and what would happen when future prospective employers called former managers.
I suppose that it is a combination of basic math and what a person figures their signature to be worth. WHO DID THESE ACCUSED PEOPLE “LET DOWN”?
I agree that the allegation relates to petitions, not to “voting” and it is not clear which section of the Criminal Code was allegedly violated — has anyone figured that out? Is the Complaint supposed to be filed today?
Wow Heitkemp with his arousal needs to simmer down he should contact a physician since it’s been 4+ hours. This is ridiculous, all if this will get thrown out or pleaded down with minimal fines, probation….maybe.
And I’ll say it here like I said last summer after talkin to a nfl scout.
Marcus Williams will turn pro after this year and get drafted in 2nd or 3rd round. Book it, and all this non issue nonsense will push him even more that way
“Seven North Dakota State football players who face voter fraud charges will be on the flight Saturday to Fort Collins for a game against Colorado State.” Does the team really fly out Saturday morning for a Saturday evening game or is that a misprint in Jeff’s article today?
Marcus Williams in the 3rd or 4th round? The “NFL scout” in your head LB is a little off. How often to you see a DIvision 1AA player leave early or let alone even get drafted that high? Brian Quick, Trumaine Johnson, and Christian Thompson are the only three Division 1AA guys drafted that high last year.
NDSU football is much, much bigger than college hockey in this state. Class A felonies, star players in snow banks, drugs, broken skulls all just little things, quickly forgotten. Boys are boys you know. Good kids all. No big news. No huge rants by local color guys taking phone calls on the radio. No big deal at all for UND hockey. Why? Hockey is obviously not a big deal.
On the other hand when NDSU football is involved, even as a misdemeanor, it’s a huge deal, nation wide. Local color guys wet their pants and the vindictive vermine are out in force. Much, much, much bigger than Hockey.
What’s up with that?
Hey Jeff & Dom (or anyone I guess):
Is there any word on when the players will “get their day in court?” Is it possible that it wouldn’t be until the season is over anyway? Have any of the players even denied the allegations against them?
Everything we’re hearing that they’ll appear in court after the season is done, either January or February, we were not allowed to ask questions to the players yesterday on this subject.
Dom, the players will not know that. Ask the State’s Attorney for Cass County (Burdick). Why is it taking so long for the State to file a Complaint with a specific charge(s)? What will the charge be? Why did the State Atty General announce today that one person named in his Tuesday press release will not actually be charged? Is there diagreement between the State Atty General and the State’s Attorney for Cass County? Those are the questions to ask the State.
Tenfold: forgot your meds, or what? If you don’t get help at prairie, get help somewhere.
Truth will out dude! You mad bro?
KFGO acts like a PAC for hidie Heitcamp (sp) and a shill against NDSU. Reporting is one thing hysterically fanning flames with speculation, name calling, innuendo and factual inaccuracies is irresponsible. Very much a hockey station.
wow what ever happen to innocent until proven quilty
These guys haven’t even been charged yet and the media is calling for suspensions. Does this warrant a suspension? Need to know facts but this clearly won’t warrant anything greater than a 1 game suspension. Bohl has been consistent over the years. Any player with a felony has been kicked off the team. If anything, maybe he was a bit harsh on Jemison.
Why is it that Lane Kiffen at USC can bring back a player with 2 felonies and he gets a free pass? Bohl has kicked every player off the team that has committed a felony.
The coach is coach.
I believe that the NDSU opinion on suspension has a lot to do with how the alleged offense affects the NDSU student population: namely,
drug, violence, stealing, and sexual misconduct ALLEGATIONS directly endanger and affect the student population. Those kinds of serious threats are dealt with firmly and immediately.
The AD is the AD.
I am sure that both of these men discussed many, if not all, of their public response options fully, frankly, and honestly in private together BEFORE each MAN made his statement to the press. Frankly, parents of students thinking about attending NDSU should think calmly and think approvingly about this NDSU SPORTS MANAGEMENT MATURE ACTION in the face of adversity.
Is anyone going to cover the actual game?
Are charges even going to be file or is a retraction of the ballot measure enough? I think if charges are going or were to be filed against these players they already would have filed and not just went to the press. Political puffery by AG Stenehjem and Sec. Jaeger is all this seems to be.
ND Century Code 12.1-14-03 (4) seems to be the Class A Misdemeanor statute and it is pretty vague. Guilty of class A misdemeanor if “otherwise obstructs or interferes with the lawful conduct of such elections or registration thereof.”
My prediction…no criminal charges will be filed and the company out of Iowa hired to collect the signatures will have some business issues of their own.
zero charges have been brought so far, and if this is settled out of court then none of this will even hit the court system. therefore all of these players should in turn sue the fargo media, tv, newspaper and especially kfgo for slander and defamation.
will there be 3 straight days of reporting and front page news on that? heck 911 and colorado massacre got less media time in fargo then this minor issue.
Here’s my thoughts on not suspending the players immediately. Is the crime of a nature that the players are likely to re offend and are a threat to society? That would be a resounding no. What are they gonna do it again?
Jemison. Its possible he’s a perv and could do it again. Drugs? Could be ongoing. Theft ring? Could still be involved. DUI? Alcohol problems and possible to reoffend. Violence? Actual dangerous people
No one has been charged! Calm down…I don’t think anyone will be charged.
But I agree this is not anything that will happen again and there was no actual harm done to anyone.
Bigtime all over the accurate prediction there. Charges were filed this morning. 12 of the 15 charged have a connection to the NDSU football team.
I don’t care who you are, you shouldn’t need to be told the ramifications of making up names on a petition. Does Best Buy have signs out front stating stealing is illegal? Does the mall have a sign saying you can’t expose your junk?
I was wrong…not the first time…not the last. It is just weird that the announcement came so early and they waited a few days before filing the charges.
October court date will be a plea of not guilty and then they will enter a plea after the season.
Why is Jemison already quilty to everyone before they go to court. and why was this woman walking around looking at crotches in the 1st place she should be picked up for being a perv in my point of view.
Calm down Cass county ain’t gonna have 12 jury trials terra strategys gonna go down in a blaze of glory.
Lots of people saw MWILL and OJURI asking for signatures at ribfest rrv fair so at least these 2 actually worked.
Get off your high horses Fargo media
Just drinking the kool aid like always. Sure, Terra Strategies will face issues from this, but is everyone on here dumb enough to not think these players knew what they were doing? I’m sure they signed contracts as well stating they wouldn’t create fraudulent signatures. I don’t get how people think this is a non-issue? They single-handedly removed these measures from the ballot. Key word “they.” They had the choice of what to do or not do and they made the poor one. Seems like a pretty big deal to me. Even funnier is that everyone knows how this will play out. Plead not guilty at initial court date, drag it out until the season is over, and then strike a deal, avoiding any suspension. Just disgusting.
I,m sure you jump to conclusions. Are you dumb enough to check in on every issue?
Taylor made a decision before the facts are in. I did graduate from ndsu in 68. IMHO I feel the first to go is Taylor. A typical Jock that only cares about his rep and not the education of these kids. If taylor can decide then so can the rest. I am ashame. Thanks