Imagine this: You run a red light and smash into another car. You then run away from the scene of the accident, only to return 10 minutes later to grab stuff from your car, including cash. Do you check on the people you hit? Nah, you just take off again. Oh, and for good measure, you forget your weed stash and pipe.
If you did this, you’d have to clear out your calendar for a while cuz you’re going to jail. But stripped UFC Light Heavyweight Champ Jon Jones did, and he’s only getting probation. Via MMA Junkie:
“Mr. Jones, you got real lucky, and in a number of ways, I think you need to talk to young people because making one stupid decision changes your entire future,” Judge Charles Brown of the Second Judicial District Court said today during the former UFC light-heavyweight champion’s hearing.
Jones, 28, was given 18 months of supervised probation and will be required to make 72 speaking appearances. He avoided fines and fees.
“I am here to accept full responsibility for what happened, and I hope you can give me an opportunity to redeem myself,” Jones said during the hearing.
On a technical level, here’s what went down: Jones was granted a conditional discharge, meaning the incident is wiped from his record when he completes the 18-month probation period. That’s very fortunate for Jones, as a felony conviction would have affected his ability to fight in other countries. Also a win for Jones: He is allowed to travel out of state for promotional purposes during his probation, and is legally in the clear to fight for the UFC immediately.
The UFC stripped Jones of his light heavyweight title and suspended him indefinitely after full details on his hit and run emerged. The promotion has not released a statement regarding Jones yet, but Dana White was at his hearing, so it seems likely that Jon has the UFC’s support and will see his suspension lifted soon. The light heavyweight strap he used to wear is being fought for on Oct. 3 in a fight between new champ Daniel Cormier and Alexander Gustafsson, so you can probably expect Jones to take on the winner in January or February 2016.
In the meantime, Jon Jones has a lot of youth centers to visit in order to chip away at those 72 speaking appearances. Hopefully he’ll make sure to tell kids they aren’t rich and famous enough to get away with the things he did. I think that’s an important lesson everyone needs to be taught. Fortunately, sports figures get a lot of community service when beating the rap on felony charges, so that helps.
(Via MMA Junkie)
