Posted on 02/01/2005 11:16:57 AM PST by newgeezer
Iowa basketball player Pierre Pierce is under investigation by police in central Iowa for his alleged involvement in an incident that stemmed out of a domestic dispute.
An incident report filed with police in West Des Moines centers around events that took place last Thursday night at a condominium complex in Dallas County, just west of Des Moines.
No charges have been filed, and the report, which indicates that the investigation is ongoing, does not mention Pierce or a female acquaintance by name.
However, the attorney who represented Pierce in a 2002 sexual assault case said Monday he has spoken with West Des Moines police on behalf of the Hawkeye junior.
“He believes there was a misunderstanding between himself and an acquaintance who he has had a relationship with for nearly 21/2 years,” attorney Alfredo Parrish said. “I have arranged for him to give a statement to West Des Moines police. Once that happens, people will understand more clearly what this is about.”
Parrish said Pierce would speak with police once Parrish returns to the state.
Pierce, Iowa’s leading scorer, practiced with the Hawkeyes on Monday afternoon at Carver-Hawkeye Arena, and Iowa officials said there would be no official comment from either Alford or university administrators.
While he did not mention Pierce by name, coach Steve Alford acknowledged the situation Monday night on his weekly call-in show.
“We’ve got to see how things all fall out before we make comments or before the administration comments,” Alford said on the program aired on the Hawkeye Radio Network. “We’ll wait and see what happens and go from there.”
The report lists $1,300 in property damage or losses involving “numerous household items” and indicates there was no forced entry into the residence. It lists a television, stereo and bedroom furniture among the items damaged or removed.
Possible charges listed on the report include first-degree burglary, criminal mischief, false imprisonment and assault with intent to commit injury.
KCCI-TV in Des Moines reported that while charges in the case could be filed as early as today, it remained possible that no charges would be filed.
This incident is not the first Pierce has had with police.
In September 2002, he was charged with third-degree sexual assault, a felony, after an incident that took place in an Iowa City townhouse where Pierce lived.
Those charges later were reduced to assault causing injury, a serious misdemeanor, as part of a plea agreement.
As part of the agreement, Pierce was required to redshirt the 2002-03 season, attend counseling sessions, was placed on one year of supervised probation and ordered to complete 200 hours of community services.
Upon completion of the terms, his record was expunged.
A native of Westmont, Ill., Pierce returned to action a year ago for Iowa and was named one of three team co-captains this season. He ranks third in the Big Ten with his scoring average of 17.8 points per game and leads the conference with an average of 2.32 steals per game.
Steve Batterson can be contacted at (563) 383-2290 or sbatterson@qctimes.com.
ahhhh, the pride of Westmont...
hes a Hawkeye.....whatdya expect?
go illini.
Hawkeye's Pierce? Is he a MASH doctor?
Just waiting for the U of I to quash this stuff fast. Nothing new to see here....
Once a scumbag, always a scumbag. If Alford wasn't such a putz, this kid would have been kicked off the team two years ago. What was Alford's solution? Prayer meetings for Pierre and the victim? What a joke.
I wondered how many posts would come before someone said that.
Don't you need to have at least 3 major felonies on your record to get into the NBA?
yep...and he's from Maine...not Iowa....
I misread the headline, thought it said Sex Change....
Never mind.
Regardless of what the U of I does, many of us are waiting to see if he'll get star treatment from the legal system again. At least no one appears to have been raped this time.
That's possibly a fairly decent representation of what goes through Pierre Pierce's mind when he's in front of a judge.
So was the fictional character "Hawkeye Pierce" from M*A*S*H.
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