Reduced penalty for BC's Smith
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Single Page| Text size – + By Bob Hohler Globe Staff / May 22, 2008
Resolving the case of a night of underage drinking gone bad, a Boston College football player who was initially charged with breaking into a female student's dorm room and raping her has admitted there were sufficient facts to support a finding that he was guilty of a lesser offense: indecent assault and battery.
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Brady J. Smith, 20, a 6-foot-2-inch, 285-pound defensive lineman who had hoped to play professionally, was ordered to stay away from the victim, regularly attend Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, and submit to random urine tests for two years. If he stays out of trouble until May 14, 2010, the charge will be dismissed, a judge ruled last week in Brighton Municipal Court.
While Smith avoided facing more serious charges, his football career appears in serious jeopardy. BC has permanently dismissed him, according to school spokesman Jack Dunn.
"It's a sad case for everybody involved," said Smith's lawyer, Philip A. Tracy Jr.
The victim, a BC senior, allegedly told police that Smith broke into her modular apartment on campus and sexually assaulted her after she rebuffed his advances at an Allston bar. Police arrested Smith, of Manchester, Md., soon after the incident in a nearby parking lot. He was initially held on $50,000 cash bail.
Suffolk County prosecutors agreed to reduce the rape charge after they reviewed the evidence and interviewed the victim, said Jake Wark, a spokesman for District Attorney Daniel F. Conley.
"The victim made it clear that she wished to resolve the case as rapidly as possible so she could graduate and leave the area with some closure in the case," Wark said.
Smith, who lost his two years of remaining football eligibility, had helped the Eagles post a 21-6 record the last two seasons, with a pair of bowl victories. His family had a long history with the school, dating to 1965, when his uncle, Charlie, captained the football team. Smith's brother, Matt, and cousin, Charles, also played for the Eagles in the 1990s.
But the family's ties to BC have been strained by Smith's liquor-related incident.
"You can blame it all on excessive alcohol [consumption]," Tracy said. "It's a lesson he has learned, and I hope other young people learn it."
Two of Smith's former BC teammates, Gosder Cherilus and DeJuan Tribble, are due in court next month on charges stemming from a bar brawl last year. The players, who were selected in the NFL draft, face two counts of assault, with one count involving a dangerous weapon (a shod foot). They have pleaded not guilty.
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