6 Notre Dame players arrested in 2 separate incidents (Update)
Six Notre Dame players were arrested over night in two separate incidents.
According to The Observer, Notre Dame’s student newspaper, cornerback Devin Butler was arrested early Saturday morning on preliminary charges of “battery against a police officer and resisting a police officer.” Elsewhere, five other ND football players — senior safety Max Redfield, sophomore linebacker Te’von Coney, sophomore running back Dexter Williams, redshirt freshman cornerback Ashton White and freshman receiver Kevin Stepherson — were arrested just after 10 p.m. Friday night following a traffic stop.
All five players involved were charged with possession of marijuana while Redfield, Stepherson and Williams face an additional charge of possession of a handgun without a license.
Per WNDU, the players were riding in a vehicle driven by White. White was pulled over for speeding (73 mph in a 60 mph zone) and having a blown out taillight.
From WNDU:
A police post indicates that the five players were arrested on U.S. 31 in Fulton County allegedly going 73 miles per hour in a 60 miles per hour zone. The vehicle also had a blown out taillight. The police officer smelled odor of marijuana emanating from the car. The trooper utilized his narcotics detecting police dog to conduct a free air sniff around the Ford. The dog indicated the presence of illegal narcotics inside the vehicle. During a subsequent search of the car, officers allegedly found marijuana and a loaded handgun. Reserve cornerback Ashton White, 19, was listed as the driver of the vehicle.
[Check out Dr. Saturday on Tumblr for entertaining things you won’t see on the blog]
Redfield has been a starter at safety for the Irish for the past two seasons. He was fourth on the team with 64 tackles in 2015. He also had two tackles for loss, a sack and an interception. The other four players involved in the incident are reserves. Williams and Stepherson were expected to be apart of the rotation at their respective positions, while Coney was likely the No. 2 weakside linebacker.
In the other incident, Butler is alleged to have pushed a woman and thrown punches at an officer outside the Linebacker Lounge, a bar in South Bend. He is facing two felony charges.
Police responded to the Linebacker, 1631 South Bend Ave., just after midnight for a report of a fight between some patrons and bar security. After officers broke up that fight, they went outside and saw several women fighting near the curb.
As police separated the women, Butler, who appeared to be “extremely irate,” walked toward one of the women and shoved her, said South Bend police Lt. Joseph Galea. When police ordered Butler to step back, he allegedly lunged at an officer, shoved him and started throwing punches.
After a brief scuffle, police were able to subdue Butler and handcuff him, Galea said. He was arrested on preliminary charges of resisting law enforcement and battery on a police officer. None of the charges were related to Butler shoving the woman, because the women left the scene before he was arrested. The officer was taken to a hospital to be evaluated for minor injuries, including a sore wrist.
Butler, a senior, fractured his foot in late December a few days before the Fiesta Bowl. He later reinjured the foot in June, prompting surgery. At that time, Irish head coach Brian Kelly said Butler would be out 14-16 weeks. With that timetable in mind, Butler was expected to miss at least the first month of the season. Butler is also eligible for a redshirt.
Butler has played in 37 games in three seasons with the program, including three starts, and has 39 tackles and an interception. He moved into the starting lineup last year against Stanford and was slated to start in the bowl game until he injured his foot.
[Visit Dr. Saturday on Facebook for stories you might have missed and chat with the writers]
Notre Dame, which completed preseason camp on Friday, opens its season Sept. 4 at Texas.
For more Notre Dame news, visit BlueAndGold.com.
– – – – – – –
Sam Cooper is a writer for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!
