DE George arrested on grand theft charge

USF senior Woody George, competing for a starting position at defensive end, was arrested at the campus police station Thursday night and charged with a felony count of grand theft relating to a missing parking boot.

George, 23, was arrested after his car had been immobilized with a boot from USF's Parking and Transportation Services on Tuesday. Parking officials told police Wednesday that the car and boot were missing, though George called police and made arrangements to return the boot, according to arrest reports.

On Thursday, however, he went into the campus police station and "told police he threw the boot away." He was arrested at 5:25 p.m. and taken to county jail. The boot is valued at $450, so George was charged with felony grand theft, which covers any theft of larger than $300 and less than $5,000.

George started 12 games at defensive tackle last season, finishing with 28 tackles. He is competing with senior Jarriett Buie for one of the starting defensive end positions. George's arrest is the fourth by a USF player since March, and while the other arrests were all misdemeanors, none have merited punishment as severe as any kind of suspension from games.

If George is able to recover the boot and return it to campus parking officials in working condition, USF police public information officer Lt. Meg Ross said there was precedent for such charges not being pursued by prosecutors.

Coach Jim Leavitt declined to comment Thursday night through assistant athletic director Chris Freet, who said the arrest was a team matter and would be handled internally. George, a 6-foot-3, 250-pound senior from Belle Glade, spent about six hours in county jail Thursday night before he was released at 1:10 a.m. Friday morning on $2,000 bond.

(photo courtesy USF sports information)

Comments

[Windbane]

Dave, I've posted on this forum many times and on thebullspen.com for over a year, so no, cee's last name is not windbane. But thanks for the ridiculous comparison and the lack of realizing I argued against his posts for about 5 threads now.

I do agree with you on the "your" thing, however. Jim, Tim, and cee might very well be the same person, however.

3 players smoking weed last year and a player removing a boot that is placed on the car too soon (I know a friend that had 6 tickets before a boot) is no reason to apply the word thug to this school.

I also don't think people should be insulting other schools trying to defend USF. You're (heh) just as bad as cee.

[Dave]

cee, if you want to give me the blame for causing the loss to Kansas (even though I wasn't even in the state of Kansas), as well for our (in your eyes only) substandard recruiting, then can I have the credit for our first BE championship?

Greg, did you know I somehow caused the negative issues in the USF football program?

[Jeff]

Wow! I can't believe that stealing a "boot" now labels someone a "thug". Bravo.

[Curtiss]

I believe that everyone involved in this story is completely absurd.

[Reality]

I guess you really dont pay attention to Big East Basketball, if you don't think people notice that Calhoun is not on the up and up.......

Good thing Marcus Williams could play ball, or else he would have been cut by the Huskies.....

[cee]

Dave.. stop defending the thugs.. it is fans like you that keep our program in the ground and continually bringing in talent that loses to Kansas only to eventually get arrested.

[Dave]

What about idiots that don't know the difference between "your" and "you're?" Or "'i' before 'e' except after 'c?'"

Jim, is your middle name "cee" by any chance? And is your last name "windbane?"

[jim]

Dave your defending idiots. USF recruits second teir athletes that are thugs.

[Dave]

I don't understand how this "thug." I've never heard 50 Cent rapping about he was gonna throw the boot on his car out.

Windbane- FSU's AJ Nicholson (2 years ago) is far worse than anything we've had. He was convicted of assault and Lorenzo Booker accused him of stealing from him. UM's Brandon Merriweather (last year) fired a gun and could've killed a guy in the FIU brawl. Bryan Pata was gunned down, but in his home he had a cache of firearms.

The worst thing we've had is Josh Julmiste stealing laptops, but UCONN hoops had a bigger ring than Julmiste, and no one says UCONN recruits thugs.

So assault, weapons charges, or boot thrower-awayers. Let's get real here. This is not a thug action, it is 22 year-old not thinking about the consequences of his actions (still should be punished, I think restitution of the boot covers it legally and Leavitt should suspend him for Elon).

[Brian]

Perhaps someone should forward this to Woody?

http://www.universalboot.com/ub/universal-clamp-parking.php

[tim]

Jonathon,
USF is recruiting thugs, FSU, Miami and UF get there picks and then USF gets the guys they didn't want. You do have a bunch of thugs and thats why we read about them everyday.

[R. Fix]

The real issue here is lack of respect for authority and civil law which is a lesson that should be taught on all levels of our education system. Although in this particular case the consequences of Woody's actions seem out of proportion to his indescretion, disciplinenary action was called for and Woody is definetly learning that lawlessness is costly.

Thats a lesson all of us need to pay more attention to. Its obvious from most of the bloggers posting on this issue that they dont have a shred of respect for any authority other than their own or any clue has to how to behave in a crowded social environment such as a college campus or life in general for that matter.

"Oh what a tangeled web we weave, when we plan to deceive

Its a Boot people. That sux, why didnt they just give him a ticket. If that was me and i was able to take the boot off, i would have. He aint a thug or a criminal, he just took an object off of his property!

[KO]

I heard that this guy was gonna get the boot, but come on!

[a]

um, completely ridiculous. give me a break, I can't believe this guy was arrested.

[Brian]

A couple things come out at me ...

1) I can't believe the kid was that irresponsible in handling things that way--knowing the profile he has as a FB player.

2) I'm suprised that would be classified as "grand theft".

In all, I am shocked at how a couple of you blow something like this so far out of proportion. You are going to have incidents with such a large group of young jocks in college. The frequency of it this off season is a little worrisome, but these have been petty issues.

Cubman/Cee ... I am sorry we aren't at the level of more established programs in terms of a discipline and legal matters such as Texas, Florida State etc.

http://www.sptimes.com/2007/07/26/Sports/FSU__Miami_players_ge.shtml

http://www.statesman.com/sports/content/sports/stories/longhorns/08/03/0803golden.html

[Stephen]

Everyone here seems to think this is up to Leavitt, this is a police issue. Maybe UPD is just tired of this type of stuff. We don't know how much stuff they over look everyday.

[JR]

You'd think he could just buy a new boot and give them that instead of the old one.

[Adam]

I would love to walk out of the locker room after the second round of two-a-days to find my car booted.

No reason to throw it away, but I can't blame him for removing it and leaving.

Anyone ever hear of second chances? I am sure we would all think Leavitt was a much better person if he went to a recruit's house and said..."ooh, this house isn't very nice, and your dad was arrested one time when he was younger, and you had a little trouble in math last year. Good luck kid, but my reputation is too important to me to try and help you make something of your life. I hear the McDonald's down the street is hiring."

If thats the coach you want, please become a fan of another team. I have heard from parents of players on the team, and they have all said CJL is a class act, that really cares about his players.

[Stephen]

Why is it when a player at USF does something stupid, everyone wants to bash either UCF or the cops that arrested him. God forbid someone actually take responsibility for what they did.

[Johnny Rotten]

I think this is rather funny and I would most likely have done the same thing at his age if this happened to me. I would have at least kept the boot to show off that I was actually able to get it off. I also beleive this kid just made a stupid mistake that I am sure he is sorry about and he did turn himself in so lets stop bashing him about it because we were all young once!

[Windbane]

"UM and FSU deserve their criminal haven reputations." UM maybe 10+ years ago, and FSU since when? Oh, you mean $300 worth of discount clothes? Get real. Stop attacking other schools to make ours look better.

But anyway, this isn't a big deal. At least he was only competing for the starting job since we already lost Julmiste for something more stupid.

[cee]

I cannot believe so many people are defending the actions of these thugs that Leavitt continues to bring in.. It is obvious that these issues would not be a problem had Leavitt not brought them in here.. It is one thing to bring in 1-star athletes, but 1-star athletes that become criminals is another thing. We need [and deserve] a better coaching staff that will evaluate talent on AND OFF the field. These repeated actions are very embarrassing and Genshaft should act accordingly by firing our coach.

[Dav]

In Woody's defense and to enlighten the UCF fans on here...

This is more magic comming from USF parking nazis... is school even in session? They suck, seriously. They gave me a $30 ticket for parking in the empty gym lot when school wasn't even in session. They have them expire the week before school to catch everyone off guard.

[Marcus Rodriguez]

Thats messed up, I feel for Woody, because I've almost gotten my car booted. I stopped the guy right before he put it on my car. It sucks, (because if you get it booted, u probably don't have any money, because if he did, he would've paid those tickets.) So I understand. But the stupid is that he threw the boot away. That was not smart. He just made a bad situation worse.

[Jeff]

a felony huh, sounds like a future oakland raider-or cincinnati bengal, or maybe the atlanta falcons will team him up with Michael Convick.

[Jonathan]

Cub Man sounds like a UCF homer alright...obsessed about everything USF. Like a little brother who just won't leave you alone. Oh, and don't get me started on UCF's wrap sheet, or UM's, or FSU's for that matter. USF is in the same situation as any other D-1 college football program - Young kids that do dumb things. The great thing about Jim Leavitt is that he holds all players accountable, no matter who you are. Woody will be punished for this by CJL. Cub Man, get a life and stop posting on this board.

GO BULLS!!

[Ryan]

I don't mean to take Woody's side, because he should have better control of his anger, but USF's parking police was a joke back when I was attending school. The year I graduated they gave me a ticket for having an expired tag, of which it wasn't expired (they did remove the ticket after I waited in line at the tag office for an hour). Then, in Febuary they sent me another parking ticket for the day of December 20th--I was visiting my parents out of town (in my car) for the holidays. When I went to the Tag office, they said they don't make mistakes like that and a month later they sent me a revised ticket--having changed the ticket's date to December 2nd instead. Even if they had made a mistake with the date somehow, it was for the parking lot by the rec. center and I didn't go over there during the final two weeks of exams.

I will say one thing for our police though, at least they don't taser our fans in the parking lots weekly--like a nearby school's police must do.

[Devo]

Felony grand theft for a parking boot??

That's ridiculous, especially when USF has been committing theft on the students for years and years.

[Ari]

Way to go buddy...

What an idiot..

did he think they wouldn't notice that thier boot was gone?

what a moron..

[Get Serious UCF Fan]

That's a great point Mike V. The actual cash value of the boot was likely well below $300. However, my guess, and it's only a guess, is that when one must pay restitution, it must be done so at the replacement cost value of the item. After all, the point is to make the person who lost the item whole.

[Mike V.]

This is incredible. A parking boot may cost $450 new, but that is not the value. I imagine USF has depreciated that equipment well below the $300 felony amount. The kid shouldn't have de-booted his car, but he did. Punish him at the misdemeanor level, not felony.

And Cub Man, you are an idiot. Go back to Chicago or Miami.

[Dave]

Good link, Season Ticket Holder. We got an accurate weight on a football player for once! Also, is his name mispelled, or does he just go by "Woody."

BTW- under "Caution Remarks" Cub Man and Reality should notice that there are no dangers associated with Woody. Just one stupid incident, and I'm sure he's learned his lesson.

[Dave]

Reality, no one is blaming a blog poster for our problems. I'm saying that our reputation is undeserved. Every school, including the Ivies, has discipline issues. It happens with 100 young guys who are basically told that they are better than everyone else (BMOC syndrome). Additionally, consider the backgrounds of these guys: many come from lower-class backgrounds and grow up near the criminal element. Many have family members that are involved in crime/gangs. Considering how many players we have from J'Ville, Miami, Lauderdale, Belle Glade, St. Pete, and Tampa, I think we are fortunate to not have had more serious issues, a la the Pata occurence at UM last year. ESPN.com had a great article about Liberty City players, but cross-apply that article to other cities, and you'll see a similar trend. Our players tend to stay out of the felony department and are guilty of everyday crimes (which I'm not excusing, just using REALITY to look at) like fighting or stupid things, like Woody.

[Season Ticket Holder]

They boot a car for a reason... and they don't boot it for a first offense. You gotta be a little smarter at USF... a senior knows how parking works around campus.

Link to arrest info: http://www.hcso.tampa.fl.us/pub/default.asp?/Online/qdisp/bn=07052778

[Reality]

Well, why you are trying to reverse the heat, and blame CEe or Cub fan or whatever UCF fan you want to blame. The "reality" is that USF has another felon on their team......

[Bill]

cub man, the saddest thing is that you are more worried about usf than your own school otherwise you wouldn't be roaming our blogs every day

[Dave]

Quite possibly the stupidest thing I've ever heard in my life...

It's not the biggest deal in the world- it is one of the weakest felony charges on the books. He should've used his better judgement and at least kept the thing, but I suspect nothing big will come of this. Hard to believe no one's bailed him out yet, too. Also the stupidest thing to spend a night in jail for. This should tell the players (and all students) to take parking laws more seriously, because while USF police can't stop grand larceny in vehicles, minor weapons issues, and guys sleeping in their car with a full weapons cache, they can sure get you for double-parking. No point in appealing either, they deny everything (I've got a good battle if anyone cares to hear it).

And CubMan, are you related to cee? Woody was also a 1-star prospect, so he obviously can't play, either. Comparing this issue to the drug dealing, gun toting, hooker hunting felons of UM is ridiculous. Let's look at 4 past USF arrests: this one, which is pretty stupid, the Grothe sting, the Jenkins/Williams fight (dropped), and the TE (I think Bleakley, but don't hold me to it) that DUI'd. Of those, clearly the TE's offense was the most serious. UM and FSU deserve their criminal haven reputations. USF's reputation should be for bone-headed mistakes made by kids who just aren't responsible yet. Few of these guys are actually "bad" people. J. Julmiste is a criminal, no question, as is Fisher. But who else actually does anything of danger to society?

George O'Leary on the other hand... Last time I checked, lying on a resume is a far bigger deal than anything USF's dealt with.

Cub Man, what's sad is all you can see is that Woody plays for a school which you despise and root against. You're so misguided that you fail to see reality, which is that this kid has to live with this blemish on his record even after it's expunged, which it will be, all because of an overzealous meter cop. Ever heard the saying, "you can beat the wrap, but you can't beat the ride"? Despite your shortcomings in that you're obviously a UCF homer, I hope you don't have to deal with an overzealous cop that decides f'n up your day gives him something fun to chat about with his buddies.

[TimG]

This kid is an idiot. There was a reason the boot on the car and then to throw it away. Stupid move now Leavitt has to suppend him a game or two.

[Kyle]

Give me a break! this is the 1st week that the old permits are considered expired so they already throw the boot on someone's car?
USF Parking needs to quit scamming people.

[Parking Boot]

Please get me out of the dumpster and return me to the campus parking patrol!

[Cub Man]

Hillarious. Looks like Jim picked another winner. 1990's Miami could only dream of a criminal record rivaling USF's. What's absurd is the miniscule amount of USF donors continue to allow this stuff to go on. They should be ashamed.

Are you kidding me? This is absurd!

[USFMikeB]

That has got to be one of the stupidest things I've ever heard...