2 Alabama players arrested in separate weekend cases

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) – Nick Saban and the Alabama football program are dealing with the weekend arrests of two Crimson Tide players in separate incidents, including domestic violence case involving a player that some say should have never been on the team.

Defensive back Geno Smith and defensive lineman Jonathan Taylor are facing legal trouble again. Saban is expected to address the media Monday evening after practice.

Smith was arrested on a charge of driving under the influence of alcohol Saturday for the second time in his career. Alabama has not announced any disciplinary actions for Smith, who apologized on social media to fans for his arrest.

Taylor’s case is potentially more of a problem for the program, even though he was kicked off the team a day later.

The player signed with the Tide months after his dismissal from Georgia and was arrested Saturday for similar allegations of domestic abuse. The case in Georgia is still pending.

Saban has kicked Taylor off the team, saying the player knew he was signed under a “zero tolerance policy.” His case has been referred to the university’s judicial affairs, according to school spokeswoman Deborah Lane.

The Alabama coach said on national signing day, the first time he addressed the signing of Taylor, that the lineman “was the kind of guy that deserved a second chance.” He said he had spoken to Taylor’s high school and junior college coaches, but Georgia’s Mark Richt and Athens-Clarke County district attorney Ken Mauldin have indicated that Saban didn’t contact them.

“When anybody says, we think this guy deserves a second chance, what qualifies him to say that?” said Kathy Redmond Brown, founder of the National Coalition Against Violent Athletes. “If you’re not talking to the prosecutor and you’re not talking to the coach, what qualifies him to say what this guy deserves or not?

“And what qualifies as a mistake? If he beat up (Saban’s) daughter and grabbed her by the throat, would that be a mistake? That is the crux of the issue.”

Brown said at the time Alabama signed Taylor, she thought it was “a huge mistake” for the message it sent to teammates and to Taylor and because it opens the school up to a Title IX claim.

Tiffany Carr, interim director of the Alabama Coalition Against Domestic Violence, praised Saban for taking swift action in removing Taylor for the team but said it’s not typically a crime committed only once.

“Domestic violence is a learned behavior, it’s a cycle of violence and control,” Carr said. “In 21 years, I’ve never known it to happen just one time.”

Taylor has been charged with domestic violence third-degree assault and domestic violence third-degree criminal mischief, police said.

The Associated Press does not routinely identify people who say they are victims domestic violence.

The 6-foot-4, 335-pound lineman was dismissed from Georgia in July 2014 following his arrest on aggravated assault and family violence charges for allegedly punching and choking his girlfriend. It is unclear if the incidents involved the same woman.

Taylor also was among four Georgia football players arrested in March 2014 for receiving double payments for checks of $71.50 issued by the school’s athletic department.

He played last season at Copiah-Lincoln Community College in Mississippi.

Alabama athletic director Bill Battle said in a statement Sunday that Taylor had received “extensive efforts to assist him.”

“All of us hope that Jonathan and the young lady involved can deal constructively with the issues that led to this situation, and their aftermath, so that both of them can have productive, healthy futures,” he said.

A spokesman said Battle was not immediately available for further comment on Monday.

Alabama had also re-signed defensive lineman D.J. Pettway out of a junior college last year, 10 months after the school dismissed him. Pettway, who apparently has steered clear of further trouble, and three other Crimson Tide players were charged with robbery in Tuscaloosa.