Skip to Content, Navigation, or Footer.
We inform. You decide.
Friday, March 29, 2024
NEWS  |  CAMPUS

Gators quarterback Treon Harris charged with misdemeanor

<p>Treon Harris attempts a pass during Florida's 34-10 win against Vanderbilt on Saturday in Nashville, Tennessee.</p>

Treon Harris attempts a pass during Florida's 34-10 win against Vanderbilt on Saturday in Nashville, Tennessee.

Florida quarterback Treon Harris has been charged with a second-degree misdemeanor for operating a motor vehicle without a valid license, first reported by the Gainesville Sun. The University of Florida Police Department issued Harris the uniform traffic citation, and court documents as well as a UPD incident report show that he has never had a license. Harris is scheduled for an arraignment on Jan. 15 at 1:30 p.m.

He is expected to plead not guilty to the charge, per his lawyer Huntley Johnson. Harris is currently in the process of obtaining his license and Johnson’s hope is that that will “take care of the matter.” 

State attorney spokesperson Darry Lloyd was not immediately available for comment.

Interim head coach D.J. Durkin was also unavailable for immediate comment because the team was at practice as of 11 a.m. A spokesperson told alligatorSports he will comment Friday afternoon about the situation. 

UPDATE: According to an incident report obtained by alligatorSports, Harris was initially stopped for driving 10 miles per hour over the campus-wide speed limit of 20 in a vehicle belonging to fellow UF student E'mani Cain. The silver infinity was traveling west on stadium road and was pulled over in the parking lot of the Springs Residential Complex.

Cain is the daughter of film executive Lamont Cain who is the registered owner of the car. Lamont also played football for the Miami Hurricanes in the mid-1990s.

On the night of the 13th, Harris was driving while UF cornerbacks Jalen Tabor and J.C. Jackson rode as passengers  — Tabor in the front seat. 

A UPD officer smelled marijuana in the car while performing the traffic stop, but the narrative states "it did not smell like burnt marijuana."

The officer asked the defensive backs to get out of the car (Harris had already exited) and Harris consented to having the car searched. 3.2 grams total of marijuana were found in two different small bags. The players refused to answer questions about who the drugs belonged to, and the narrative gave an explanation as to why neither player was charged with marijuana possession. 

"Because it was not their vehicle and we could not prove ownership or possession of the marijuana to any of the passengers at the time, and it was not in a position readily accessible to the driver, no charges were filed for the marijuana."

Harris was given a warning for speeding but was given the citation for driving without a valid license and told he would have a court date on Jan. 15. The narrative states the students will be referred to Student Conduct Conflict Resolution regarding the marijuana in the car and Cain gave permission via phone for Tabor — who has a license — to drive the car back to her residence. 

UPDATE 2: Friday afternoon, the University Athletic Association released a statement regarding the players' status for the upcoming Birmingham Bowl game against East Carolina.

"We are aware of the incident and are dealing with it internally and their bowl status hasn’t changed."

Follow Richard Johnson on Twitter @RagjUF

Treon Harris attempts a pass during Florida's 34-10 win against Vanderbilt on Saturday in Nashville, Tennessee.

Enjoy what you're reading? Get content from The Alligator delivered to your inbox
Support your local paper
Donate Today
The Independent Florida Alligator has been independent of the university since 1971, your donation today could help #SaveStudentNewsrooms. Please consider giving today.

Powered by SNworks Solutions by The State News
All Content © 2024 The Independent Florida Alligator and Campus Communications, Inc.