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'I never gave them permission to put their hands on me,' woman tells AJC
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 07/01/08
Athens — The person whose accusations led to the arrest of two Georgia football players Monday told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution the charges were the result of inappropriate touching.
Another Georgia football player may face charges after allegedly punching a fellow UGA student in a separate incident that occurred Saturday night.
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Sophomore offensive linemen Justin Anderson and Trinton Sturdivant were arrested Monday by Athens-Clarke County Sherriff's deputies and charged with simple battery. Warrants for their arrests were issued after an alleged incident occurred early Friday morning at the East Campus Village dormitory on the UGA campus.
Trina Bailey, 22, of Bogart, gave the Altlanta Journal-Constitution permission to use her name with her account of the events. She said she and a friend were returning to the dorm about 1:30 a.m. Friday after watching a movie at another friend's house when they encountered Anderson and Sturdivant and another unidentified male in a breezeway.
"These three gentlemen came out of a door and it appeared they'd been drinking," said Bailey, who said she is not a UGA student but was visiting a friend who is. "One of them asked what my name was and I told them. He asked me if I was pregnant and asked me to turn around and I did. All three of them then came up around me and two of them started touching my stomach in a way that was very uncomfortable, a kind of sexual manner. I turned and walked away and they started following me and making sexual comments."
Bailey, who said she is six months pregnant, said the advances were unsolicited.
"I never gave them permission to put their hands on me," she said emphatically.
Bailey said she didn't know the men were Georgia football players. "I had no idea who they were," she said.
Bailey said that she identified the players when a dorm attendant showed her their pictures on Facebook.com. The incident, she said, was also captured by the dorm's cameras.
Ed Tolley, an Athens lawyer who is representing the two players, said the charges are unfounded.
"The only thing I can tell you is I've talked with both boys and they absolutely deny they did anything of an offensive nature," Tolley said Tuesday. "They're completely shocked that this allegation has been made."
In the Saturday night incident, Demarius Jackson, a rising junior from Albany, claims that defensive lineman Michael Lemon punched him at least five times -- including one that resulted in a fracture of his left eye socket -- in an altercation that occurred at a barbecue at an apartment complex. Jackson was taken St. Mary's Hospital via ambulance and released about eight hours later. Lemon left the scene.
Lemon, a redshirt freshman from Lizella, had not been arrested as of Tuesday afternoon. However, Jackson said he filed charges with the district attorney's office and he expects an arrest.
It likely will be at least a "few days" before Georgia football coach Mark Richt addresses the arrests, according to UGA sports communications director Claude Felton.
As for Anderson and Sturdivant, who were each released on $1,500 bond Monday night, "that's a misdemeanor offense," Felton said. "In most cases that falls to the discretion of the head coach as far as what discipline would be administered and Coach Richt is out of town all week."
Felton had no comment on Lemon's case since charges still have not been filed.
If Lemon is indeed arrested on Wednesday, that would make him the seventh Georgia football player to be charged with a crime since the end of last season.
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- GEORGIA: A week off to fix problems (09/29/2008)
- Bruised, battered Dogs take a hit in both polls (09/29/2008)
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