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Major Culbert


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Charges threaten former Narbonne athlete's future

 

An Oregon prosecutor issues an arrest warrant for Major Culbert, 18. The University of Nebraska has suspended its football scholarship offer to the Daily Breeze's 2005 athlete of the year. Culbert calls it a misunderstanding.

By Bob Holtzman

DAILY BREEZE

 

A highly recruited Narbonne High School star running back and the 2005 Daily Breeze player of the year was arrested on suspicion of sexual abuse and burglary in connection with an alleged incident during a January recruiting trip that could cost him his college scholarship.

 

A warrant for the arrest of Major Culbert, 18, was issued in April from Oregon, according to Kerry Delf, public information officer for the Eugene Police Department.

 

 

 

The lead detective in the investigation, Ralph Burks, declined to discuss specifics of the case but stressed that in Oregon sexual abuse in the first degree -- the charge filed against Culbert -- does not mean rape.

 

"It could be touching, it could be a lot of things," Burks said.

 

The incident allegedly happened the weekend of Jan. 13, when Culbert was visiting the University of Oregon on a football recruiting trip. The San Pedro resident ultimately signed with Nebraska, where he was expected to play safety.

 

Nebraska football coach Bill Callahan released a statement Monday that said the school learned about Culbert's legal issues on May 5 and that the university "immediately suspended its scholarship obligations to Culbert" on May 17, when Eugene law enforcement agents confirmed his arrest.

 

"A final status regarding his status will be reviewed once we have sufficient information from these proceedings," Callahan said. "He will have no association with the University of Nebraska or its football program until that decision is made."

 

Delf said the arrest stems from an incident reported at Barnhart Hall, an off-campus university dormitory, and that it involves female students who lived in the dorm.

 

The Lane County District Attorney's Office did not return phone calls seeking information on the case.

 

Culbert was arrested by Harbor Division officers on May 15 and booked into jail on May 16 just after midnight. He was not released until the afternoon of May 19, after a court hearing in Los Angeles.

 

Details on the hearing were not available but Culbert was released without posting any bail, according to online documents.

 

In a phone interview following the hearing, he called the incident a "total misunderstanding."

 

"I thought it was over," Culbert said. "I didn't tell my family anything."

 

Culbert declined to discuss the incident further.

 

Under Oregon law, sexual abuse in the first degree means forcibly compelling a person to have sexual contact, or having sexual contact with a person younger than 14 or someone incapable of consent because he or she is mentally defective, incapacitated or physically helpless.

 

Narbonne football coach Manual Douglas said he was not aware of the charges but called them, "very un-Major-like sounding to me."

 

"This sounds totally out of character," he said. Culbert was a two-time Daily Breeze All-Area selection in football. He played running back and defensive back at Narbonne.

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After reading some more about this, what's interesting to me is why this is coming to light now? Did Oregon see no use to keep the covers over this since they missed out on Culbert? Does Oregon use Colorado-like recruiting tactics? Who knows.

I guess this free's up another Scholarship for someone else.

Probably. We'll have to wait and see.

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AR----you are the expert here, what is your take on him getting released with out any bond/bail. Obviously the charges are serious to get arrested but how serious if he didnt have to post any bond at all?

It could still be quite serious. A good defense attorney would stress:

 

1. No physical harm

2. Lack of previous arrests or convictions

3. Youth

4. Lack of likelihood of him skipping out on the hearing

 

The last one is particularly important. Bail is usually waived at least a couple of the reasons above are shown. Given his age and desire to play college football, it is unlikely he would flee.

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but the main thing is that this happened in Oregon and he is now in California. You would figure that he would have to post something to prove that he will be in court in Oregon.

not much different than the altercation with Stoops "roughnecks" at Oklahoma a couple years ago.....

 

 

 

hunter

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but the main thing is that this happened in Oregon and he is now in California. You would figure that he would have to post something to prove that he will be in court in Oregon.

Technically, it is presumed that a person will appear; bail is set when other factors come into play, or when there is a good possibility that the person won't appear. Absent any indication that he would skip or any of the other factors, bail is not appropriate.

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