COLUMBUS, Ohio - Former Ohio State football star Maurice Clarett agreed Monday to plead guilty to aggravated robbery and carrying a concealed weapon. The deal would send him to prison for at least 3 1/2 years and end two criminal cases against him.
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The agreement was announced by Judge David Fais on the day jury selection was to begin in a case in which Clarett is accused of holding up two people outside a bar.
The concealed weapon charge was from his August arrest after a highway chase with police who found four loaded guns in Clarett's sport utility vehicle after they spiked the tires. Police used pepper spray to subdue and handcuff Clarett, who was wearing a bulletproof vest.
The deal called for a 7 1/2-year sentence with release possible after 3 1/2 years. The 22-year-old player also agreed to serve five years of probation after the prison sentence.
Clarett said he understood he was pleading guilty and reversing his earlier innocent plea.
"I'd like to apologize for my behavior, and I accept the time that was given to me," he said.
After the deal was announced, he looked over at his mother who was sobbing and holding his 8-week-old daughter while sitting next to his girlfriend.
Assistant Prosecutor Tim Mitchell said the plea deal is consistent with how his office handles similar cases.
"Anyone else would have gone to prison. He's not getting any special treatment," Mitchell said.
"As robberies go it wasn't as bad as some I've seen."
Defense attorneys left the courtroom without commenting.
After the police-chase incident, Clarett was charged with two counts of failure to comply with an order from a police officer and improper handling of a firearm, in addition to the concealed-weapon charge.
The case generated such intense media coverage Clarett's attorneys asked the court to pay for a public opinion poll to determine if an impartial jury could be seated for the robbery trial. Fais denied the request.
Clarett scored the winning touchdown in the second overtime of the Fiesta Bowl to lead Ohio State to the 2002 national championship, but that was the last game he played for the Buckeyes.
After dropping out of Ohio State, he lost a U.S. Supreme Court case challenging the NFL's requirement that players wait three years after high school before turning pro. The Denver Broncos made Clarett a surprise third-round pick in the NFL's 2005 draft but cut him during the preseason
