TW:Pettigrew arrested early Sunday

[JimBob]

OSU football player Pettigrew arrested early Sunday


By Bill Haisten, World Sports Writer
1/21/2008 5:34 PM


Oklahoma State football player Brandon Pettigrew, an All-Big 12 tight end, was arrested Sunday morning on complaints of assault and battery on a police officer and public intoxication.

Pettigrew, 22, is scheduled fo be arraigned in Payne County District Court at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday.

At approximately 1:20 a.m. Sunday, Stillwater Police Lt. Mike Metcalf said, officers responded to the call of an altercation at a Stillwater residence in the 2300 block of North Dryden. The altercation involved "10 to 15 people," Metcalf said.

The 6-foot-6, 260-pound Pettigrew and others were told to disperse, but Pettigrew refused to leave, Metcalf said. With his elbow, Pettigrew allegedly struck an officer in the chest, Metcalf said. Initially booked into the Stillwater jail, Pettigrew was transferred to the Payne County jail. He was released shortly before 10 a.m. Sunday.

Cowboy coach Mike Gundy was out of town on Monday and unavailable for comment, said Kevin Klintworth, OSU's associate athletic director for media relations.

"We are gathering information," Klintworth said. "Coach Gundy is aware of the situation."

During the 2007 season, Pettigrew had 35 catches for 540 yards and four touchdowns. A native of Tyler, Texas, he considered early entry in the NFL Draft, but last week announced that he would remain at Oklahoma State for his senior season

[pokeinokc]

Well crap, that oughta be good for a medical hardship ala the Dusty Rule right? Now Pettigrew has two more years, yea.....;):rolleyes:

[MemphisPoke]

I agree on the "Well Crap" part.

Am I going to have to come over there and teach those 19, 20, 21 & 22 year olds "Drinking 101"??? Someone needs to!!!

Jeez, don't these guys realize that they stick out in a crowd and then to fight with the officer. Not cool. Not cool in the least bit.

[CaliforniaCowboy]

if that's how he's going to behave, makes me wish he had moved on.

[barryrules]

He'd better be kicked off the team!!!

[osupsycho]

Well this report left out one important detail that was in another report. Apparently he struck the officer in the chest using his elbow. Now think about that... If you are using your elbow you are likely not trying to harm anyone and knowing some of the Stillwater PD I can see how this got blown out of proportion real fast. I will wait to see what the coaches say but would not be surprised if this is not that big of a deal...

[WyomingOSUAlum]

Nailing another person with my elbow is the most powerful upper-body strike I can throw. I can take anybody out with that strike, and I mean ANYBODY, if I can land it properly.

And I'm 45 years old. And I'm damn sure not 6-6, 260!

As to whether or not it was intentional, I guess we'll have to wait and see how it plays out.

[acefin]

damn it i hate all the news that is surrounding osu this week . the part i hate is Pettigrew is one of my favorite players. somone on another site said that it was osu ' baseball players that started the fight and had swung first. if this is so then the whole baseball team should be disciplined and pettigrew should get a 3 game suspension at the most.
i reall am wondering why osu's athletes are dumbing down ? does the athletic director need to sit all the athletes down in G.I.A. AND REAM THEM OUT .? I know i would if i were Mike Holder.

now about recuiting are we losing our better recuits ? I hope not. I am just a little concerned here but it is nothing probally .

Memo to Pettigrew
we have too many knuckleheads in Stilwater so please conduct yourself in a positive light you have the ability to be a hall of fame tightend at least at osu . so please dont get caught and ruin your chances.
your biggest fan

[osupsycho]

Nailing another person with my elbow is the most powerful upper-body strike I can throw. I can take anybody out with that strike, and I mean ANYBODY, if I can land it properly.

And I'm 45 years old. And I'm damn sure not 6-6, 260!

As to whether or not it was intentional, I guess we'll have to wait and see how it plays out.

I am not saying that it would not be a good weapon to use... what I am saying is that I somehow doubt that his intent was assualt if all he used was his elbow. I mean if you are going after the officer why not a punch, a kick or even a headbutt. The elbow is much more of a "get off me" or get "away from behind me" type thing. Now the possible exception is unless he was already in cuffs, in which case the elbow may have been the only thing he could use and he was truly assualting them.

My point is we should not jump to conclusions...

[CoachOSU]

I am not defending him at all but I have personally seen the Stillwater and OSU Police Officers be violent with people on the strip, even the people that were allowing them to put them in handcuffs. (ex. throwing them to the ground to cuff them when they didn't need to be)

Of course, I understand that drunk people are unpredictable so at times you might have to be a little more aggressive toward them... but let's wait and see what happened... if the police officer was over aggressive toward him because of his size then it might of both been their faults.

If he intentionally tried to strike the police officer without being roughed up or egged on... then I would think swift disipline would soon follow.

[Verb]

My kids witnessed (from a distance, luckily) two different incidents of the Stillwater police being abusive. I'm just not willing to take any sides on this story till the truth comes out, if it ever does.

[CaliforniaCowboy]

there is a post on OP.com where "supposedly", the police report is pretty bogus... that he was being lead away by two friends when the cop told him to stop and grabbed his shoulder to turn him around, and Branden tryied to shrug him off... that's it. No elbow. No forearm. No pushing.

help... assalt on a police man... resisting arrest!!!


reportedly from eye witnesses...


who knows.

[CowboyJD]

I am not saying that it would not be a good weapon to use... what I am saying is that I somehow doubt that his intent was assualt if all he used was his elbow. I mean if you are going after the officer why not a punch, a kick or even a headbutt. The elbow is much more of a "get off me" or get "away from behind me" type thing. Now the possible exception is unless he was already in cuffs, in which case the elbow may have been the only thing he could use and he was truly assualting them.

My point is we should not jump to conclusions...

An elbow would be more effective than any of those others with the least likelihood of hurting yourself. I'm not sure why you would doubt someone would choose to use an elbow/forearm over those other limbs if they had an intent to assault. I'd say the use of the particular body body doesn't have anything to say about intent, really.

Time will tell. Evidence will come out. We can wait.

[WyomingOSUAlum]

I can't really comment on brutality allegations one way or the other since I wasn't there.

However, as a general rule, when officers are called to the scene of a brawl, the officers are usually outnumbered. Therefore, if you have to use force on somebody, you had better be successful the first time. If you're not successful the first time, you're going to get your ass kicked.

(That's not a carte blanche to commit brutality on people, mind you.)

[WyomingOSUAlum]

I am not defending him at all but I have personally seen the Stillwater and OSU Police Officers be violent with people on the strip, even the people that were allowing them to put them in handcuffs. (ex. throwing them to the ground to cuff them when they didn't need to be)

Of course, I understand that drunk people are unpredictable so at times you might have to be a little more aggressive toward them... but let's wait and see what happened... if the police officer was over aggressive toward him because of his size then it might of both been their faults.


You did a pretty good job of looking at both sides of the coin there, coach.

The only other thing that I can add is this: I'll tell somebody that they are under arrest. I'll tell them to turn around and put their hands behind their back. If they refuse to comply and the situation permits, then I'll even take a moment to explain to them what's going to happen if they don't.

Most people go along with the program.

There are those rare occasions when they don't. When it's time to act, you move quickly and decisively. Take the guy to the ground. Put on the cuffs. Help the guy to his feet. Dust him off. Put his hat back on his head. Tell him it's over and that he's going to walk to the car with me and he's going to walk with his head up like a man, not kicking and screaming like a 2 year old.

Again, most of the people go along with the program. Some don't.

And yes, some times the officer gets out of line. It happens. But just because one officer did on one occasion doesn't mean these officers acted inappropriately.

Personally, I hope it's all just a big misunderstanding.

[okstatepike]

Personally, I hope it's all just a big misunderstanding.

You said it brother...

sheesh, we just can't seem to catcha break can we?

[snuffy]

OSU's Pettigrew charged with felony assault on police officer

By Andrea Cohen
Staff Writer
STILLWATER—Oklahoma State All-Big 12 tight end Brandon Pettigrew was arraigned Tuesday afternoon in Payne County and charged with a felony count of assault and battery upon a police officer and a misdemeanor count of public intoxication. He pled not guilty and will reappear in court on March 3.


After appearing in court with attorney Willie Baker, Pettigrew declined comment. Pettigrew’s status with the football program is unclear as OSU athletic department spokesman Kevin Klintworth said football coach Mike Gundy will not have a comment until he returns from a recruiting trip. Klintworth said he does not know when Gundy will return.

The charges against Pettigrew, 22, stem from an incident on Jan. 20 at the 2300 North Dryden. Court documents explain the felony charge as Pettigrew “willfully and unlawfully striking and hitting Paul Priegle a Stillwater police officer on the chest with his elbow with the intent to injure said officer, knowing that said officer was a Stillwater Police Officer in the performance of his duties.”

According to the police report Pettigrew was given the opportunity to leave a fight between “10 to 15 people” that was in progress Sunday at 1:20 a.m. The report states that Pettigrew refused to leave the area, and after being order to leave several times, Pettigrew allegedly cursed the officers and struck Priegle.

Pettigrew, a junior, contemplated entering this year’s NFL Draft but announced last week that he will return to OSU for his senior year. The 6-foot-6, 260-pound tight end from Tyler, Texas, has 70 career receptions, including 35 in the 2007-08 season.

More Stories By By Andrea Cohen

[WyomingOSUAlum]

For a couple of reasons, that's the worst news of the day. Thanks for posting just the same.

[snuffy]

For a couple of reasons, that's the worst news of the day. Thanks for posting just the same.

There seems to be a lot of stories floating around about what may or may not have happen that just got shot down with the arraignment hearing.

I have had cops mess with me before, but for it to go this far means something happened IMO. Maybe Dove can show him where the stadium stairs are and the least boring way to run up and down them between this August.

[andyokstate]

Awww snap.

[JimBob]

OSU football player Pettigrew charged with assaulting police officer


By Patti Weaver, World Correspondent
1/22/2008 5:38 PM


STILLWATER -- Oklahoma State University football player Brandon Pettigrew was charged Tuesday with assault and battery on a police officer and public intoxication stemming from a weekend incident at a Stillwater residence.

Pettigrew, 22, who was arrested about 1:30 a.m. Sunday, was arraigned on the two-count charge Tuesday before Special District Judge Michael Stano, who ordered him to return to court March 3 when he can ask for a preliminary hearing.

The 6-foot-6, 260-pound Pettigrew stood silently in court with his hands in his pockets as the judge told him that a felony charge had been filed against him. He had been released from the Payne County Jail about 10 a.m. Sunday after posting $5,000 bond.

If convicted of the felony count accusing him of hitting Stillwater Police Officer Paul Priegel on the chest with his elbow, Pettigrew could receive as much as a five-year prison term and a $500 fine.

If convicted of the public intoxication misdemeanor count, Pettigrew could receive as much as a 30-day jail term and a $100 fine.

Pettigrew was the only person arrested when three Stillwater police officers were sent to a report of a fight in progress between 10 to 15 people about 1:20 a.m. Sunday at a residence in the 2300 block of North Dryden Street, police spokesman Dale Higgins said Tuesday.

When police arrived, Pettigrew was outside and had his shirt off -- even though it was about 20 degrees, Higgins said. "He was obviously intoxicated. He was screaming at a group of people there," Higgins said.

"Several friends of his tried to get him to leave. The officers told him to cooperate. His friends were going to give him a ride.

"His friends kept trying to get hold of him, pull him, to get him to leave. He kept pulling away, continuing to yell," Higgins said.

"He continued to scream at the officers. They handcuffed him at the scene for safety. He finally calmed down," Higgins said.

"The officers told his friends 'We'll cut him loose. Take him home,'" since Pettigrew was allegedly intoxicated, Higgins said.

The friends agreed to take Pettigrew home and police took the handcuffs off Pettigrew, Higgins said.

Pettigrew "began to walk away -- then he started walking toward the people and yelling," Higgins said.

"The officers gave him numerous more opportunities to leave. He refused to cooperate. They decided to arrest him for public intoxication. He elbowed one of the officers," Higgins alleged.

Stillwater police frequently respond to fights on the weekend "especially involving alcohol in a college community," Higgins said.

[Ostate]

Sounds like Pwttigrew is nothing more than a dumb jock! I hate drunks.

[jakeman]

OSU football player Pettigrew charged with assaulting police officer


By Patti Weaver, World Correspondent
1/22/2008 5:38 PM


STILLWATER -- Oklahoma State University football player Brandon Pettigrew was charged Tuesday with assault and battery on a police officer and public intoxication stemming from a weekend incident at a Stillwater residence.

Pettigrew, 22, who was arrested about 1:30 a.m. Sunday, was arraigned on the two-count charge Tuesday before Special District Judge Michael Stano, who ordered him to return to court March 3 when he can ask for a preliminary hearing.

The 6-foot-6, 260-pound Pettigrew stood silently in court with his hands in his pockets as the judge told him that a felony charge had been filed against him. He had been released from the Payne County Jail about 10 a.m. Sunday after posting $5,000 bond.

If convicted of the felony count accusing him of hitting Stillwater Police Officer Paul Priegel on the chest with his elbow, Pettigrew could receive as much as a five-year prison term and a $500 fine.

If convicted of the public intoxication misdemeanor count, Pettigrew could receive as much as a 30-day jail term and a $100 fine.

Pettigrew was the only person arrested when three Stillwater police officers were sent to a report of a fight in progress between 10 to 15 people about 1:20 a.m. Sunday at a residence in the 2300 block of North Dryden Street, police spokesman Dale Higgins said Tuesday.

When police arrived, Pettigrew was outside and had his shirt off -- even though it was about 20 degrees, Higgins said. "He was obviously intoxicated. He was screaming at a group of people there," Higgins said.

"Several friends of his tried to get him to leave. The officers told him to cooperate. His friends were going to give him a ride.

"His friends kept trying to get hold of him, pull him, to get him to leave. He kept pulling away, continuing to yell," Higgins said.

"He continued to scream at the officers. They handcuffed him at the scene for safety. He finally calmed down," Higgins said.

"The officers told his friends 'We'll cut him loose. Take him home,'" since Pettigrew was allegedly intoxicated, Higgins said.

The friends agreed to take Pettigrew home and police took the handcuffs off Pettigrew, Higgins said.

Pettigrew "began to walk away -- then he started walking toward the people and yelling," Higgins said.

"The officers gave him numerous more opportunities to leave. He refused to cooperate. They decided to arrest him for public intoxication. He elbowed one of the officers," Higgins alleged.

Stillwater police frequently respond to fights on the weekend "especially involving alcohol in a college community," Higgins said.

It's probably just me, but that doesn't sound so very good. I'm just sayin'.

[andyokstate]

Too bad he's not a happy drunk. I would much rather see a story like: "Football player goes around hugging everyone and gets into a superlative fest; "You're the BEST! Nahh, I'm not...YOU'RE the MAN! I love you guys.""

I hope he realizes that things like this can smother interest in him for the draft. His response should be to work crazy hard, keep his nose clean, and show everyone that this incident is an isolated o ne.

[WyomingOSUAlum]

I hope he realizes that things like this can smother interest in him for the draft. His response should be to work crazy hard, keep his nose clean, and show everyone that this incident is an isolated o ne.


Agreed. And he's got to pray this gets either dismissed or plead it down to a misdemeanor or he's done here.

Just a shame all the way around.

[PokeNBeans]

Does anyone think this was charged as a felony to get him to plea to a lesser charge?

I don't know what actually happened, but, a guy the size of BP turns around and someone standing close gets bumped. Whats the size of the officer involved?

[WyomingOSUAlum]

I wonder if it was video taped.