Arrested just over three weeks ago with a gun in his car, Emoni Bates has since been suspended by his new college, Eastern Michigan, pending trial.
Finally, the former high school phenom is doing well, his lawyer having succeeded in negotiating the dropping of charges.
His lawyer, Steve Haney, explained that he had reached an agreement with the Washtenaw County Prosecutor’s Office in Michigan in exchange for the dropping of all criminal charges. Emoni Bates is expected to plead guilty to the misdemeanor of attempting to illegally transport a weapon. The charges will be permanently lifted when the 18-year-old basketball player completes a diversion program.
As a result, Emoni Bates is no longer suspended by her college, and can therefore return to campus and the gymnasium.
“The Eastern Michigan University Athletic Department has been advised that an agreement has been reached between the Washtenaw County District Attorney’s Office and counsel for Emoni Bates which would result in the criminal charges being dropped”explained the college in a press release. “In accordance with EMU athletic policies, Mr. Bates is immediately reinstated in all athletic and on-campus activities. »
Good news for the career of Emoni Bates, even if the rating of the former US high school star with NBA franchises is now at its lowest. A time ranked first among the best high school students of the class of 2022, Emoni Bates has indeed clearly been on a slippery slope for several months. And following a failed “freshman” season in Memphis, he had therefore opted, this summer, for a new start in Eastern Michigan, a modest college, close to home but which should not really help him boost his rating in sight. of the Draft 2023.
