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Report: DA's bizarre reasoning allows Alabama star Cam Robinson to avoid prosecution
A district attorney in Louisiana decided not to pursue prosecution of Alabama's star left tackle Cam Robinson and reserve defensive back Hootie Jones, according to an AL.com report Monday, saying that they did not find sufficient evidence to prosecute.
"I want to emphasize once again that the main reason I'm doing this is that I refuse to ruin the lives of two young men who have spent their adolescence and teenage years, working and sweating, while we were all in the air conditioning," the DA said, according to KNOE-TV.
That quote from the DA sounds like something you’d expect from a story about big-time athletes getting in trouble from a piece in The Onion. But it’s very real.
The charges, however, were not dropped completely. Meaning the case could proceed in the future if new evidence is presented.
Still, this news probably elicited a big sigh of relief from Nick Saban and Alabama fans. The 6-6, 328-pound Robinson -- a Monroe, La., native -- was arrested in May. The charges included possession of a stolen firearm, a felony, and a misdemeanor charge of possession of a controlled dangerous substance. He also was charged with illegal carrying of a weapon in the presence of narcotics. Jones faced the same two lesser charges as Robinson.
According to the police report, an officer approached the two players and detected the smell of marijuana. After they were removed from the car, the officer found a bag of marijuana and two handguns -- one of which was stolen -- inside the vehicle.
Robinson has started all 29 games in his career at Alabama and is the player the Tide could least afford to lose on its 2016 roster, especially due to how the Alabama depth chart stacks up and the litany of stud pass-rushers this team will face this season. Among them: Texas A&M's tandem of Myles Garrett and Deashon Hall; LSU's Arden Key and Lewis Neal; Tennessee's Derek Barnett, Ole Miss' Marquis Haynes, and Arkansas' Deatrich Wise.
Alabama has a young offensive tackle the staff is excited about in Jonah Williams, an early enrolled freshman getting a long look at the right tackle spot. Saban told FOX in April how much he liked how athletic, explosive and bright the young Californian is, but he still needs to get bigger and stronger. Sophomore Lester Cotton, a guard, is another option as would be Korren Kirven, the player listed as the back-up left tackle. But it'd have been a stretch to think there wouldn't be a lot of dropoff if Robinson wasn't in the lineup when the Tide opens up the season in Texas against USC.
