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 Spartans' starter suspended Fullback Greene cited for several recent run-ins with law
Posted: Wednesday June 09, 1999 12:18 AM
EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) -- The projected starting fullback on the Michigan State football team has been suspended indefinitely after being charged Tuesday in connection with a riot at the school in March. Bill Greene, 22, was arraigned on a misdemeanor charge of assembling for a riot. It is punishable by 90 days in jail. He also faces a misdemeanor marijuana possession charge -- unrelated to the riot -- which carries a $25 fine. As many as 10,000 people ran through the streets of East Lansing on March 27-28 after Michigan State's basketball team lost to Duke in the NCAA Final Four. The charge alleges that Greene was present "for the purpose of engaging in conduct constituting the crime of riot." "The offense is so minor, you would wonder why it's even being charged," said Greene's attorney, Stuart Shafer. "He was just standing around. He didn't do any damage to anything. He didn't burn any cars." Shafer said Greene put out a car fire the night of the riot. "He saw the car on fire and grabbed a fire extinguisher," Shafer said. Greene stood mute Tuesday in East Lansing District Court, which means the court enters a plea of innocent on his behalf. Greene was already on probation with the football program for previous run-ins with the law, Michigan State coach Nick Saban said. In 1997, Greene was charged with two counts of home invasion, a felony stemming from a theft at a university residence hall. "As a result of these instances, he is suspended indefinitely from the team," Saban told the Lansing State Journal for a story Wednesday. "I will reevaluate his status after the legal process is completed." The marijuana charge relates to a June 3 incident involving Greene at an apartment where police discovered the drug in an ashtray, Shafer said. Greene, who has one year of athletic eligibility remaining, elevated himself from a career backup to the Spartans No. 1 fullback during spring practice. In 1997, Greene was sentenced to a year of probation after pleading guilty to taking a CD player, CDs, some clothing and a calculator from a room at Case Hall during Michigan State's winter break in December 1996. He was allowed to enter the Holmes Youthful Trainee Act program. First-time offenders between 17 and 21 are eligible for the program designed to give them a second chance by erasing the crime from their record if they finish the program. Shafer said Greene completed the program. Student-athletes who are on probation from their team remain on scholarship, but lose privileges such as use of the weight room and sharing team meals. Greene's brother, Scott played at Michigan State from 1992-95 and plays for the Indianapolis Colts.
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