UC QB found not guilty of assault

Jarred Evans, UC's backup quarterback last year, was found not guilty of an assault charge Monday after he said he punched a fellow student in self-defense.

A jury of five men and three women reached a verdict after more than three hours of deliberations in Hamilton County Municipal Court.

Evans' mother put her face in her hands after the verdict was announced and sobbed. Evans wiped tears from his eyes.

"We're very, very happy with the outcome," said Kimberly Reese, a spokeswoman for Evans' family. "(And) thankful for a jury that saw what really happened."

Judge Robert Taylor declared a mistrial on a disorderly conduct charge after jurors could not reach a verdict. Prosecutors will decide whether to re-try him on that count, which Taylor called a "minor misdemeanor."

The jury had to sort through contradictory accounts of the incident, which happened the early morning of Oct. 19, 2014 on a Clifton sidewalk shortly after bars had closed and people were leaving.

Evans, now a 22-year-old senior, testified that he had been walking arm-in-arm with his girlfriend when a group of about four college-age men began directing racist comments toward both of them.

One of the men, Evans said, blocked their path on the sidewalk. He said the man "flinched at me with his hands up, and I just reacted with a punch, a jab."

Evans' girlfriend supported his account.

The punch sent Ryan Smith, a 20-year-old University of Cincinnati sophomore, face down to the concrete. Smith, however, testified that he didn't say anything to Evans and didn't block his path. He said he never saw Evans, and that the punch "blindsided" him.

Prosecutors in closing arguments urged jurors to focus on the testimony of Courtney Gravett, Evans' girlfriend's roommate. She was walking ahead of Evans and his girlfriend when the incident happened, according to testimony.

Gravett said Evans began shouting at the group of men, although she didn't know why.

Evans, she said, walked into the street, continued yelling, then walked back to the sidewalk and punched Smith.

Evans' attorney, Paul Laufman, said the incident unfolded quickly.

"It was a fast-moving, fluid event," Laufman said in an interview. "I think it's natural that people will see different things and perceive things differently."

The trial began last Tuesday with jury selection. Closing arguments took place Monday morning.

Before jury selection began, Evans pleaded no contest to obstructing official business, also a misdemeanor. Prosecutors said he tried to avoid arrest by running from police officers after the incident. He will be sentenced on that charge April 28.

That is not expected to affect Evans' status on the team, Reese said, and his family expects him to be on the field for spring practices.