Player's arrest could have legal ramifications

IU sophomore forward Hanner Mosquera-Perea was arrested on charges of operating a vehicle under the influence of alcohol at 3:28 a.m. Friday by officers of the IU Police Department, according to a Monroe County Sheriff’s booking report.

Officer Hutchens of the Monroe County Correctional Center told the Indiana Daily Student over the phone that Mosquera-Perea was arrested on charges of two Class A misdemeanors — OWI Endangerment and OWI Per Se.

He received the endangerment charge for having one passenger in his car and the OWI Per Se charge is a result of his 0.15 blood alcohol content at the time of his arrest.

He was held at the Monroe County Jail on $1,000 bond with a $500 surety, according to the booking report. Sergeant Link of the Monroe County Jail told the IDS over the phone that Mosquera-Perea was released Friday afternoon.

IU Associate Professor of Law Ryan Scott said reports indicate the government has a “pretty good case,” based on the reported blood alcohol test administered to Mosquera-Perea. He said the vast majority of defendants in criminal cases, including OWI cases, generally plead guilty.

Scott teaches criminal law and procedure, as well as federal courts and jurisdiction in the Maurer School of Law.

“What I expect will happen in very short order is that he’ll meet with an attorney and he’ll talk about pleading guilty,” Scott said. “In operating while intoxicated cases, pleading guilty has some advantages because the suspension of your license is shorter.”

He said in theory, both Class A misdemeanors could carry up to one year in jail and up to a $5,000 fine.

“That would be very surprising though,” Scott said. “My sense is that for a first-time OWI that jail time is very unusual. Usually it’s a fine and a probationary sentence and a suspension of license for some period of time.”

Scott said Mosquera-Perea’s 0.15 BAC is the dividing line between a Class A and a Class C misdemeanor. The sophomore was charged with the more serious of the two charges.

The Maurer School of Law professor said it’s tough to predict what Mosquera-Perea’s legal ramifications will be because every case is different. He added that the judge and the prosecution will have some discretion in what charges to press. He said Mosquera-Perea could strike an agreement with the prosecution to agree to plead guilty to a lesser sentence.

“There’s still a possibility that by the time this case moves to the punishment stage, it looks very different,” Scott said. “The charges may be different or it might be a condition of a guilty plea that the sentence will be less serious so it’s hard to say (what his sentence will be) given that there are so many important decisions yet to be made in a case like this.”

Follow reporter Andy Wittry on Twitter @AndyWittry