Alex Lewis Mugshot from the Boulder County Sheriff's office.
Maybe Alex Lewis, former offensive lineman for the University of Colorado, belongs in jail.
These are the FACTS and they are not under dispute:
-- Friday Day May 10th: CU offensive lineman Alexander Lewis announced to the national media that he was leaving Colorado for the Cornholers at the University of Nebraska.
-- Friday Night May 10th: Lewis went out drinking. By his own admission, he consumed 22 alcoholic beverages. That's right, 22, as in six glasses of wine, ten beers, and six shots. Even for a very large man, that amount of alcohol would make him VERY intoxicated.
-- Early Saturday Morning: While walking on The Hill shortly after 3 a.m., Lewis got into an altercation with a cadet from the Air Force Academy. The altercation left the cadet hospitalized and led to the arrest of Lewis for 2nd Degree Assault and two counts of Harassment.
-- According to the CU depth chart, Alex Lewis is 6'6" tall and weighs 285 pounds.
-- Cadet Lee Bussey is 5'11" tall and weighs 185 pounds.
-- That means that Lewis is 7 inches taller and 100 pounds heavier than the Air Force cadet.
-- Also arrested and charged with 2nd Degree Assault was Colorado QB Jordan Webb.
-- Donald Brenner is the lawyer for Alex Lewis.
-- CU and Nebraska were rivals in the same conference from 1948-2010. The are no longer in the same conference.
-- Nebraska and the Air Force Academy have never been in the same conference and are not considered rivals.
-- Once again, those are the FACTS and they are not under dispute.
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Once we get past the facts, we get to the CLAIMS, particularly from the lawyers involved. It is important to remember to make sure those claims make sense in light of the known facts. In this case, several of the claims do not seem to hold water.
Of course, many claims by lawyers have to be taken with the grain of salt that comes with "lawyer-speak" -- which is very similar to "journalist-speak." In this type of speech, the use of the words "MAY" or "MAYBE" are bandied about with great frequency because they allow the speaker to say just about anything without making an actual claim that might be identified as an outright lie. Using the words "MAY" or "MAYBE" allows those involved to throw out any unlikely scenario as a possible alibi for actions of the accused. MAYBE.
As a good journalist, let me play the game too. Media reports that quote lawyer Brenner MAY indicate he has done a poor job addressing the press about his client. And I will go out on a limb and say outright that the press HAS done a POOR job in challenging the claims of Brenner.
The first claim by Brenner about his client that should have raised objections from the press is his assertion that his client "MAY" have been accosted for wearing Nebraska gear. The purpose of this use of "MAY" is to bring to light the long rivalry between CU and Nebraska. In response to the "MAY" is the use of the word "WHY" - as in, WHY would an Air Force cadet care about the no longer existent rivalry between CU and Nebraska?
The other claim made by Brenner that should have raised questions from the press was his claim that "My client didn't do anything but shove a fellow." Really? Do folks normally end up in the hospital after being shoved? Were you there Mr. Brenner? Is it possible that your very intoxicated client MAYBE does not remember clearly what happened? Is it possible that MAYBE your client donned Nebraska gear and decided he was in enemy territory and he was looking for a fight? That MAYBE he was trying to impress his new teammates in Lincoln by kicking someone's butt in Boulder? Is it possible? MAYBE.
As an American citizen, Alex Lewis should be considered to be innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. If he is found guilty, however, he should go to jail and pay the price for his actions. 2nd Degree Assault is is FELONY. NO MAYBE about it.
UPDATE May 15th
Both Alex Lewis and Jordan Webb were officially charged today (Wednesday, May 15th) with Second Degree Assault, a felony. Lewis was also charged with two misdemeanor counts of Harassment.
According to an article in the Daily Camera, the attorney Donald Brenner backed off his earlier claims that his client Lewis was accosted for wearing Nebraska gear. He is quoted as saying that Lewis "wasn't dressed in Nebraska gear. I don't know where I got that from. I've been bombarded by the press with so much innuendo. I get confused." Chilling words indeed for Lewis, who faces possible prison time if convicted.
UPDATE June 6th
The preliminary hearing for Alex Lewis and Jordan Webb has been postponed until July 1st. Both men remain free on bond.
