MSU football player Demetrius Cooper enters plea deal in assault case
EAST LANSING - A misdemeanor assault charge against a Michigan State University football player will be dismissed in November if he complies with his bond conditions.
Demetrius Cooper, a senior with a year of football eligibility remaining, was charged in connection with an incident involving a parking enforcement officer last fall on Grand River Avenue, near Abbot Road.
He pleaded no contest in 54B District Court on Thursday under an arrangement that would leave him responsible for only a civil infraction, court records indicate.
Judge Richard Ball took the no-contest plea under advisement. If Cooper complies with his bond requirements, the assault charge will be dismissed and he will admit responsibility to littering, said his attorney, James Heos.
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The case stemmed from an Oct. 30 incident in which Cooper had left his car stopped in front of a restaurant after discovering that his order was incorrect, according to police and court records. An East Lansing Parking and Code Enforcement (PACE) officer wrote him a ticket for impeding traffic. The incident escalated when the officer went back to his truck to issue a second ticket after Cooper began walking back into the restaurant, according to the reports.
Cooper approached the truck's driver-side window, threatened to spit on the officer and then "spit a large amount of saliva" in his face, the officer reported.
Cooper was arrested in connection with the incident on Nov. 30.
Heos said his client maintains his innocence and denies the allegations.
Cooper was a starter at defensive end for MSU last season and has played 38 games in his MSU career. He expects to graduate this spring and plans to start graduate school in the fall, Heos said.
The plea agreement is a fair way to resolve the case, the attorney said.
"I'm confident it will be a littering violation," he said. "(Cooper) does not use drugs and does not use alcohol. I think it will be very simple for him to comply with the bond requirements."
Contact Ken Palmer at (517) 377-1032 or kpalmer@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @KBPalm_lsj.