Talented NFL rookie and former Alabama star arrested
Former Alabama Crimson Tide star linebacker Reuben Foster, who just finished his rookie year with the San Francisco 49ers, was arrested in Tuscaloosa Friday, charged with second-degree marijuana possession.
Alabama, of course, is the home state of U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who issued a controversial directive Jan. 4 asserting federal authority over states that have made legal a drug that is still a Schedule 1 controlled substance on the national level.
Marijuana is illegal in Alabama, unlike Foster’s part-time home in California.
Tuscaloosa Police Department has released a short statement about Reuben Foster marijuana possession arrest that doesn't provide many details: https://t.co/E01C1RFUOC pic.twitter.com/ZTx4Evg2ri
— Stephanie Taylor (@TPD_Steph) January 13, 2018
Second-degree marijuana possession is defined in the Alabama Criminal Code as:
“(a) A person commits the crime of unlawful possession of marihuana in the second degree if, except as otherwise authorized, he possesses marihuana for his personal use only.
“(b) Unlawful possession of marihuana in the second degree is a Class A misdemeanor.”
Bond was set at $2,500; if convicted, Foster would face up to a year in jail and a $6,000 fine.
Alabama is one of an ever-decreasing count of states where marijuana possession is still illegal. Recreational marijuana is legal in eight states plus D.C., including the 49ers’ home of California, while an additional 22 states have broad provisions making medical use of the drug legal and several others allow marijuana for specific medical conditions (such as severe epilepsy, using the drug’s anti-seizure capabilities) only.
Still, the old “when in Rome” saying applies. Foster allegedly possessed weed in a place where it’s not legal to do so.
The team issued a statement on Foster’s arrest:
“The San Francisco 49ers organization is aware of the matter involving Reuben Foster, and we are currently gathering all relevant facts.”
Foster was under scrutiny leading up to the 2017 draft. He had a diluted urine sample that was treated as a positive test, and he was sent home from the NFL scouting combine after he got into a “heated argument” with a hospital worker during his physical.
“It’s like the devil is coming after me,” he told NFL.com.
The Niners went 6-10, winning their last five games with quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo and with Foster emerging as one of the top young defensive players in the league. They could be on the edge of contention; they may have given up a top-two draft pick by winning out after starting 1-10 but will still be picking ninth or 10th and could get Garoppolo an elite wideout to throw to or a great offensive lineman to protect him.
But they’ll face a tougher road if their star linebacker is in jail next season.
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