MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — WVU tight end Jovani Haskins pleaded guilty to reckless driving and entered a deferred guilty plea to fleeing from an officer in Monongalia County Magistrate Court on Monday.
Magistrate Sandy Holepit accepted the plea agreement, which also dismissed one count of driving left of center.
The charges stemmed from an attempted early morning traffic stop on July 28.
Holepit sentenced Haskins to a $500 fine and court costs for the reckless driving conviction.
Haskins will need to complete 100 hours of community service, an eight hour in-person DMV approved driving class, pay his court costs and acquire no new violations for a year to complete the terms of the deferral, Assistant Prosecutor Erik Brown said.
“Make sure you do everything you’re supposed to do or I will use that guilty plea against you and you will not like it,” Holepit said. “I guarantee you will not like it.”
Holepit said Haskins’ actions endangered lives and was beyond the typical “young and dumb” mistake.
A WVU police officer spotted a white Audi A4 speeding on University Avenue about 3:15 a.m. July 28, according to a criminal complaint. The officer saw the car almost strike another vehicle in the turning lane of University Avenue and Campus Drive.
The officer activated his emergency lights but the vehicle continued on at a high rate of speed and crossed the center line “multiple times.” A second officer saw the same car speed down University Avenue before it passed another car using the turning lane and moved into the oncoming traffic lane.
After getting stuck in traffic, the Audi turned down Ensign Avenue and parked in the Metro Towers parking area, the criminal complaint said. The driver got out and ran away.
The car’s registration was cross referenced with WVU parking records, which showed citations to Haskins. Haskins matched the description of the suspect who fled, and his student ID card was found inside the vehicle.
His car was towed and later that day, Haskins was questioned when he went to the WVU police station to retrieve the vehicle, according to a police report.
Haskins told police he was at a friend’s house on High Street and went home on University Avenue, passing the Mountain Lair. Haskins said he did not see a patrol vehicle with its lights on behind him and that he didn’t know what to do when he saw multiple police cars and officers around his car from his apartment, the police report said.
Following the arrest, Haskins, a junior, sat out the first half of the opener against James Madison and hasn’t had much on-field success so far this season. He has just three catches for 13 yards, and redshirt freshman Mike O’Laughlin is getting the majority of the reps at tight end.
Haskins transferred to WVU from Miami (Fla.) prior to the 2017 season.
