Dominique Hatfield Charged with Misdemeanor Assault

Earlier today, Dominique Hatfield was charged with assault as a B misdemeanor. These charges arose from events unrelated to his prior arrest and charges. According to the filing documents, the victim's statement is that Hatfield was at a party when he was asked to stop rolling a marijuana cigarette, and that he and four or five others responded by attacking the victim. This allegedly occurred in the early morning on July 5, less than 48 hours after Hatfield was released from jail on his prior charges.

Simple assault is the lowest level assault crime, and rarely carries a serious risk of jail time. The story contained in the charging document isn't very believable on its face. However, the fact that Hatfield appears to have made decisions that put him in a situation like this so soon after bailing out on the other issues is notable. It's reasonable to speculate that Coach Whittingham was aware of this altercation when he made the decision to dismiss instead of suspend Hatfield on July 6.

Hatfield is once again being represented by Gregory Skordas, and he has publicly expressed confidence that the charges against his client will not stand for long. Regardless, Hatfield's path back to football is almost certain to begin in 2016. It remains to be seen if he will take that path, and if it will lead him back to the Utes.