Pubdate: Fri, 08 Jun 2001
Source: St. Petersburg Times (FL)
Copyright: 2001 St. Petersburg Times
Contact:  http://www.sptimes.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/419
Author: Greg Auman

BEARS' CAPEL, PROSECUTORS REACH AGREEMENT

GAINESVILLE -- Former Hernando standout John Capel reached a deferred 
prosecution agreement with prosecutors Thursday that will allow him to have 
a misdemeanor charge of possession of marijuana cleared from his record in 
six months.

Capel, in minicamp as a rookie with the Chicago Bears this week, didn't 
make the trip to the Alachua County Courthouse for Thursday's arraignment, 
but his attorney was present to finalize the agreement.

"In six months, if indeed he is not arrested, the case will be dismissed," 
said Michael Hornung of Fort Myers. He said Capel will make a $100 donation 
to Gainesville's Black on Black Crime Task Force as part of the arrangement.

Capel was arrested May 5 when an officer making a traffic stop noticed a 
"very strong odor of marijuana" and later found less than 20 grams of 
marijuana in a fast-food bag on the floor of the car, according to police 
reports.

Capel and the passenger denied ownership of the drugs, but the passenger 
told police that Capel had told him to put the drugs in the bag after 
seeing the police lights in his rearview mirror.

Capel couldn't be reached for comment Thursday, but his lawyer reiterated 
allegations of racial profiling from the Alachua County Sheriff's Office, 
saying the car never should have been stopped in the first place.

"There's an extraordinary amount of black males being stopped for those 
types of violations," Hornung said. "Granted, all of those violations an 
officer can make a stop and inquire. What we find very disturbing is that 
there is a disproportionate amount of stops on black individuals as opposed 
to any other citizens."

The Sheriff's Office declined to comment Thursday, and Hornung went so far 
as to accuse the local police of favoring not only minorities, but athletes 
as well.

"It's a very strange situation in this county," he said. "They want these 
players up here during certain times of the year to fill an 85,000-seat 
stadium, but during the rest of the year, it's hell for some of these 
athletes."
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