OSU players get jail time for rifle incident
Thursday, July 17, 2008 10:52 AM PDT
CORVALLIS (AP) — Oregon State outfielder John Wallace and former Beavers pitcher Anton Maxwell have been sentenced to 15 days in jail for firing rifle bullets that struck a neighbor’s house and car.
Maxwell, 22, and Wallace, 21, pleaded guilty in Benton County Circuit Court to recklessly endangering another.
Charges of criminal mischief and unlawful use of a weapon were dropped in a plea deal.
‘‘Let’s call this what it was,’’ Benton County Judge Locke Williams said at Wednesday’s hearing. ‘‘It was monumental stupidity.
‘‘With first-time offenders, we don’t often let them see the inside of a jail. We may be doing them a disservice. If you haven’t already had a wake-up call, this will be it.’’
A third player charged in the case, Jorge Reyes, the Most Outstanding Player of the 2007 College World Series, is expected to enter into a plea agreement at his next court appearance on Aug. 26, the Gazette-Times newspaper reported.
Corvallis police say the three fired .22-caliber rifle bullets into a neighbor’s house — one into a bedroom — during late-night target shooting on March 18.
The bullets also struck a car parked behind that house in a neighborhood north of the Corvallis campus.
There were no injuries.
Besides their jail time, Wallace and Maxwell will be on probation for a year and must serve 20 hours of community service.
Defense attorneys described their clients as good people who made an error in judgment. District Attorney John Haroldson agreed with the characterization, noting that both were cooperative and willing to take responsibility.
Wallace and Maxwell, who both apologized in court, were ordered to report to the Benton County Jail on Wednesday and stay through July 21. They will then be released for four days before resuming their sentences.
