Brooks Receives 10-Year Sentence

Football: Rancho Cucamonga High Grad Reaches Plea Bargain on Drug Charges.

Former Rancho Cucamonga High and University of Arkansas football
player Jermaine Brooks agreed to a plea bargain with the Washington
County (Ark.) prosecutor's office Wednesday on four felony drug charges.

Washington County Circuit Court Judge William Storey sentenced Brooks
to 10 years in prison on three of the counts, with the prison terms to
be served concurrently.

"It could have been a lot worse," Brooks said Wednesday night by
phone. "I don't think anybody's ever happy that they have to go
anywhere other than their house. I'm a man. I feel that what I've done
is wrong, I'm going to accept it and do what I have to do to get my
life back on track."

"That's pretty much what I wanted from the outset," Washington County
Deputy Prosecutor John Threet said of the deal. "We negotiated a
little on the charges. It didn't take long."

Brooks was arrested Oct. 22 after police raided his Fayetteville,
Ark., apartment and found 7.5 pounds of marijuana, six guns and
$16,841 in cash. Earlier that day, police traced an additional three
pounds of marijuana to Brooks through sales.

Brooks' attorney, W.H. Taylor, did not return calls to his
office.

Brooks pleaded guilty to one count of possession of marijuana, one
count of possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver,
one count of possession of drug paraphernalia and one count of theft
by receiving. All four charges are class C felonies and carry a
maximum sentence of 10 years in prison. Storey suspended the sentence
on the theft conviction.

Brooks said he wanted to avoid a jury trial so he could resolve the
situation as soon as possible.

The prosecution dropped a charge of simultaneous possession of drugs
and firearms, a class Y felony. That charge carried a maximum sentence
of 30 years in prison.

"That one, basically, is for people that have the guns for the drugs,
or use it for the drugs," Threet said. "His claim was that he had the
guns for shooting. He went out and shot them [at a shooting range]."

Threet said Brooks, who must report to jail March 24, will be eligible
for parole in 18 to 24 months.

Brooks said his lawyer is trying to get him into a 120-day boot camp,
but the waiting list is three to four months. If he is accepted to the
boot camp, Brooks could be paroled sooner.

"If I don't get accepted [to the camp], it's really hard to talk about
that," Brooks said. "I'm praying that I do."

Once Brooks is on parole, Threet said the former Razorback could
pursue a professional football career.

"That's up to the parole officer," Threet said. "He'll be on parole
for the balance of the 10 years. He'll still be the property of the
Arkansas Department of Corrections, but people transfer their parole
all the time."