Lawon Benford has done everything possible to stay clear of trouble this year.
No more cutting up in class, no more referrals, no more saggy pants in the halls at Thomas Jefferson High School. The junior is getting the best grades of his life and is back on the basketball court, a year after leaving the team only to watch the Spartans win their first state basketball title since 1967.
Ask Benford’s father, coach and athletic director, and he’s been a model of reform.
Then late one Sunday night in January, trouble found Benford.
As the story goes, Benford, 17, was driving a friend and his friend’s friend home around midnight when he was pulled over. Benford said he knew something was wrong when more police showed up, guns were drawn and he and his two passengers were ordered to exit the vehicle.
None of this made sense to Benford, until police retrieved a loaded handgun from under the passenger seat of his car.
Then came the handcuffs, a ride to the police station and, because no one owned up to responsibility for the gun, a mandatory five days in jail for unlawful possession.
“It was the scariest feeling in my life,” said Benford, who denied ever seeing the weapon before it was plopped down on the trunk of his car by police.
Benford’s jail time cost him two games with the Spartans and his ill-advised decision to plead guilty to a misdemeanor weapons charge last month nearly got him expelled.
But Benford is back, albeit forcibly wiser, and so are the Spartans. They are one of the teams in the Class 4A final four that play today at the University of Colorado’s Coors Events Center.
The Spartans (17-9) meet 2004 champion Broomfield (20-6) at 5:30 p.m. for a ticket to Saturday’s state final
School close to booting him
Today’s tournament experience is all new to Benford, who left the team just before the playoffs last season when he was accused of forging a teacher’s signature on an academic eligibility sheet a charge he denies. That, coupled with several disciplinary referrals, had Benford close to getting kicked out of school, according to TJ assistant principal and athletic director Lani Nobles.
The young man, known for his ability to communicate confidently with adults and penchant for poetry, was at a serious crossroads.
Adding to the emotional mix, Benford was only a spectator for TJ’s state championship victory. He was forced to watch his cousin, Pierre Allen, solidify his 2005 player of the year status with another dominating performance.
Benford realized something had to change.
“I worked out all summer and worked on my grades to make sure something like that would never come up again,” he said.
Benford has gotten mostly A’s and B’s this year and has been assisting in the disciplinary office at TJ. For those who know him, Lawon was back to being Lawon.
“All we ever did was play basketball and chase girls. We never really got in trouble at all,” said Allen, a 6-foot-5 power forward who will play football this fall at Nebraska. “So when he started getting in trouble in high school a little bit, I was just shocked. It’s probably his new crowd. But he’s not a bad kid at all.”
Then came the worst moment of Benford’s life.
Benford never before had felt handcuffs, and spending five days in jail was enough to make him climb the walls. It was devastating to his father.
“I wish that never happens to a parent. You can’t sleep, you can’t eat,” Larry Benford said.
Lawon Benford missed two games because of his arrest, a win over West and a loss at 5A power Chaparral, where he could be seen watching through the gym doors. Minus his captaincy, he returned to the team for its Jan. 24 game against George Washington and led the Spartans with 22 points in a 77-76 overtime loss.
Benford decided to plead guilty to a lesser charge last month in exchange for six months’ probation and the guarantee of having his record expunged if he stayed clean. The Benfords accepted the plea without being advised of Denver Public Schools policy that all weapons and drug convictions trigger automatic expulsion hearings.
Lawon found out about his new situation when he arrived in Longmont for practice the morning of Feb. 25 as the Spartans were preparing to play Fossil Ridge in the second round of the playoffs. He was not allowed to play.
“I regret it,” he said of pleading guilty. “I thought, as it was explained to me, that after the six months it would be over.”
“So refreshing to see”
According to Nobles, the Benfords waived their right to an expulsion hearing. That allowed Lawon to get back in school and back on the team based upon his behavior, but also meant he will be expelled for any conduct violation.
“We’re pretty confident, because he hasn’t been in one lick of trouble the whole year,” Nobles said. “It’s just so refreshing to see a kid turn it around that quickly.”
Said TJ coach and graduate Grant Laman: “He’s a kid that really wants to do the best that he possibly can.”
Lawon got a tattoo three months ago of a basketball with a crown surrounded by the words “Born a prince, to become a king.” It’s a reminder to him that he alone decides his future.
Benford wants to win a state title with his cousin, Allen, who calls Benford his motivation. Indirectly, Benford was part of Allen’s motivation last season.
When Benford left the squad, Allen was forced to hang out with the rest of his teammates. Benford credits those bonds for bringing the team together for its title run.
There is no more anger in Benford when he thinks of his recent turmoil. He takes solace in his present course and the belief that everything happens for a reason.
“Adversity builds character and I really have a lot of character,” he said Monday. “With what I’ve been through, I think I could take on the world.”
Fortunately, he only has to take on Broomfield tonight.
If things work out, he will get a shot at winning a state championship on Saturday.
