Eastern Michigan basketball star Emoni Bates' legal woes are now behind him.
Bates was sentenced Wednesday to 18 months of probation stemming from his arrest on felony gun charges after he was pulled over in September. He pled down to a misdemeanor gun charge in October.
Judge Patrick Conlin of Washtenaw County Circuit Court sentenced Bates, 18, under the Holmes Youthful Training Act (HYTA), meaning that the misdemeanor conviction will be scrubbed from his record after he completes a successful probation period. Conlin waived a fine, which could've been as much as $2,500.
"I'm very pleased," said Bates' attorney, Steven Haney, "given what happened that night."
Bates was arrested by the Washtenaw County Sherriff's Department after running a stop sign on the night of Sept. 18. He was arrested on two felony gun charges after deputies searched his car and discovered an unloaded Glock 17C 9-millimeter that wasn't registered to him, and also was missing one of its three serial numbers. Deputies also recovered a magazine and 17 rounds of ammunition. Also confiscated: a bag of marijuana and a scale, and several cigars; you must be 21 in Michigan to possess marijuana and, as of July, tobacco. Bates also didn't have a valid driver's license to drive the 2022 black Mitsubishi Outlander, which also wasn't registered to him.
Bates was held overnight in the Washtenaw County Jail, and was indefinitely suspended by Eastern Michigan.
He was reinstated to the team in mid-October after accepting the plea, and he is averaging 19.4 points per game to lead Eastern Michigan. He missed the season opener against Wayne State, believed to be punishment for the arrest.
Bates' case has drawn comparisons to another high-profile arrest of a star athlete: Michigan defensive star and captain Mazi Smith was arrested on felony gun charges in October by Ann Arbor Police, after police discovered he was in possession of a firearm without having completed the process of obtaining a concealed piston license. Smith was arrested the morning of Oct. 7 and arrested, but he was released and not detained, and played the next day at Indiana, and hasn't missed a game this season.
Smith wasn't charged by the Washtenaw County Prosecutor's Office until late November.
"The difference in terms of charging was Emoni was taken into custody and held; anybody can tell you that triggers the 48-hour rule (to charge)," prosecutor Eli Savit said. "That's why we had to act quicker on Bates, because he was being held in jail, where with Mazi Smith he was not (kept in) custody."
Savit said it's police discretion on whether to detain a person who has been arrested. The arresting officers of Bates and Smith were from different departments.
Smith, 21, also has pled down to a misdemeanor charge and is scheduled to be sentenced virtually on Dec. 29, two days before Michigan plays in the College Football Playoff.
Savit said he's pleased with both outcomes, but also wants the public to know his department takes a hard stance when it comes to gun ownership.
"I hope that if you are a gun owner, you take the time to familiarize yourself with the relevant laws that govern carrying weapons in our state," Savit said. "It's important for people to know that you can be in violation of the law even if a gun is registered to you, if you don't have a CPL and you're carrying it in your car in a manner that's not authorized. We get a lot of people that come in on this, and we charge those cases.
"Make sure you're in compliance, because nobody wants to catch a criminal charge."
Haney, Bates' attorney, said he appreciates how Michigan handled Smith's case, in waiting before deciding whether to punish the standout player. He said Eastern Michigan's rush to suspend Bates "hurt my client." Haney said there were some evidence issues that could've played out in Bates' favor in court, including a discrepancy over where he was pulled over, and where the police report said he was pulled over.
But because Eastern Michigan issued the immediate suspension, the priority turned to getting Bates back on the court as quickly as possible.
That led to the October plea, and Wednesday's sentencing.
"But for the suspension, we probably would've had hearings," Haney said Wednesday night. "I'm just glad both kids get to move on and further their careers and their academic pursuits.
"You never want to see young kids at that age make a mistake and be derailed, when they have bright futures."
