Kenrick Ellis’ past is about to catch up to him.
Ellis, a defensive tackle from Hampton University in Virginia and a third-round draft pick of the New York Jets this year, is facing felony assault charges related to an incident in April 2010 on Hampton’s campus.
Ellis’ trial was supposed to start this month but was pushed back to Nov. 28 — during the NFL season, if there is one. And his trial could be pushed back again if the season is underway.
Missing the NFL season is the least of the 23-year-old’s worries. Ellis could be deported to Jamaica. He was born in Jamaica and moved to the United States when he was 11.
Ellis has “permanent resident” status and if convicted he could never play football again in America. He also faces up to 20 years in prison.
According to CBS Sportsline’s Ryan Wilson and ESPN’s Rick Cimini, Ellis was dismissed from the University of South Carolina for failing multiple drug tests. Unlike the Jets, other NFL teams stayed away from the 6-foot-5, 350-pound lineman during the April draft because of his past and potential deportation.
“Based on all the information we have, we’re comfortable taking him,” Jets general manager Mike Tannenbaum told the New York Daily News after the making the pick. “Maybe his risk is more than others, but if we didn’t feel he’d be successful here, we wouldn’t have taken him. . . . It was appropriate to take him where we took him.”
Denver Post wire reports
