Simpson and Collins part of a drug investigation (Collins looks to maybe be in the clear)

[Bengals1181]

[url="http://twitter.com/#!/GeoffHobsonCin"]GeoffHobsonCin[/url] [color=#999999][size=3]Geoff Hobson[/size][/color]
[color=#999999][size=2]
[/size][/color]

[font=Arial,]
Simpson excused from [url="http://twitter.com/#!/search?q=%23Bengals"][s]#[/s][b]Bengals[/b][/url] practice today. Status for Sunday not clear[/font]

[url="http://twitter.com/#!/GeoffHobsonCin/status/116911809797160960"]10 minutes ago[/url] [size=2][url="http://twitter.com/#"][/url][/size]

[Cricket]

[quote name='Bengals1181' timestamp='1316709844' post='1034906'][url="http://twitter.com/#!/GeoffHobsonCin"]GeoffHobsonCin[/url] [color=#999999][size=3]Geoff Hobson[/size][/color]
[color=#999999][size=2]
[/size][/color]

[font=Arial,]
Simpson excused from [url="http://twitter.com/#!/search?q=%23Bengals"][s]#[/s][b]Bengals[/b][/url] practice today. [b]Status for Sunday not clear[/b][/font]

[url="http://twitter.com/#!/GeoffHobsonCin/status/116911809797160960"]10 minutes ago[/url] [size=2][url="http://twitter.com/#"][/url][/size][/quote]

Is Hobson using a Magic 8 Ball now?

[sois]

What was Simpson's rookie contract like? Maybe he had to sell drugs to get by.

[Bengals1181]

[quote name='sois' timestamp='1316710131' post='1034910']
What was Simpson's rookie contract like? Maybe he had to sell drugs to get by.
[/quote]


he was making $555,000 this season.

[Jeb]

[quote name='sois' timestamp='1316710131' post='1034910']
What was Simpson's rookie contract like? Maybe he had to sell drugs to get by.
[/quote]

[TheBeaverHunter]

[quote name='Ben' timestamp='1316709141' post='1034897']
If they would have just supported their local farmers instead of importing from the liberal elite out west, this would have never happened.
[/quote]


They did until they just got busted too.

Also, for real PAC MAN. "Prayers with him". I am sure god is listening to your prayers about the 8 lbs of weed found at your boy's house.

http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20110920/NEWS0107/110920023/Record-pot-bust-25-700-plants-?odyssey=tab|mostpopular|text|FRONTPAGE

[quote]
[b] Record pot bust: 25,700 plants[/b]





Talk about a field of dreams: Someone was secretly growing more than 25,700 marijuana plants in a dense forest in Switzerland County, Ind., until law enforcement agencies discovered them last week.
The crop set an Indiana state record for a single outdoor growing operation, Indiana State Police said.
It took three days for officers from five agencies – Indiana Conservation, Switzerland County Sheriff’s Office, Vevay police, the Indiana State Police and the Indiana National Guard -- to round up the crop and eradicate it.

Helicopters from the Indiana National Guard flew personnel in and out of the dense forest.
And, based on conservative estimates that state police provided, the crop had a street value of more than $38 million.

The big question - who was growing it - remains a mystery. The Indiana State Police said it didn’t know who was cultivating it.

Events leading to the big discovery began two weeks ago, when conservation officers spotted a large plot of marijuana on Green Valley Road off Indiana 56. Those officers eradicated 864 plants and recommended that state police fly over the area in a helicopter to check for other plants. The first flight officers were able to schedule was last Thursday.

“While flying in Indiana National Guard helicopters, state police and National Guard spotters discovered several other plots in the area,” a news release said. That led to another 3,700 plants. Then, “troopers, deputies, and local police worked all day” on Friday and Saturday. “The total eradicated for the three-day operation was 24,877 plants. When added to the 864 plants eradicated two weeks earlier by conservation officers the total number of plants exceeded 25,700, an Indiana record for a single outdoor growing operation,” a news release said.

The plants were growing on 10 different plots, which investigators believe “were all part of the same growing operation,” a news release said.

Officers asked anyone with any information about the cultivator of the crop to call the Indiana State Police Post at Versailles at 812-689-5000 or the Indiana State Police Marijuana Tip Hotline at 888-873-1694 (from within Indiana only). Callers may remain anonymous, police said.[/quote]

[Jamie_B]

[quote name='Cricket' timestamp='1316710052' post='1034908']
Is Hobson using a Magic 8 Ball now?
[/quote]


As long as it's a Magic 8 Ball, and not just an 8 Ball.... though that would explain some of his headlines.

[UCJT]

2nd round pick - certainly enough to live on. Glad Collins doesn't appear to be involved, but another black eye for the Bengals doesn't help.

I'd also say that while Jerome is playing well, I remember a lot of hand-wringing when we kept him and let go of Briscoe (effectively letting him go by putting him on the practice squad). While he is playing well - is he truly part of the future of this team? At best, the answer is/was maybe.

And also - there is no way we are better than 8-8 with him. While Dalton and Green played well, Denver couldn't have had more people not playing last week, and we still lost the game. The team is a work-in-progress that will win some it should lose, and lose some it should win. If Simpson is gone, it will suck, but a decent wide-out can be found a HELL of a lot faster than a decent LT or CB.

[texbengal]

[quote name='Bengals1181' timestamp='1316708120' post='1034888']
[url="http://twitter.com/#!/REALPACMAN24"]REALPACMAN24[/url] [color=#999999][size=3]ADAm Pacman Jones[/size][/color]

[i]by CincyJungle[/i]


My prayers goes out to my friend and teammate Rom keep your head up

[url="http://twitter.com/#!/REALPACMAN24/status/116897215993233408"]40 minutes ago[/url]
[/quote]


Right. BTW, did he say who "Rom" is?

He seems to have a problem with missing vowels. This week, it's 'e'. Last week, it was an 'a' in "beat."

Next week, I'm going for an o, or an i, or a u. Maybe something like:

"I'm gonna make it ran!"

[Jason]

I'm starting to miss Chad.









Almost.

[Bengals1181]

[url="http://cincinnati.com/blogs/bengals/2011/09/22/simpson-not-at-practice-today/"]http://cincinnati.co...practice-today/[/url]
[quote]

[b] [url="http://cincinnati.com/blogs/bengals/2011/09/22/simpson-not-at-practice-today/"]Simpson not at practice today[/url][/b]

[b] 1:03 pm, Sep 22, 2011 | Written by [email="jreedy@enquirer.com"]jreedy[/email] | [url="http://cincinnati.com/blogs/bengals/2011/09/22/simpson-not-at-practice-today/#comments"]0 Comments [/url] | [/b]




WR Jerome Simpson has been excused from Bengals practice today as an investigation into the delivery of a 2.5 pound package of marijuana continues.

On SiriusXM NFL Radio’s “The Opening Drive” today, head coach Marvin Lewis said that Simpson is cooperating in the investigation but that teammate Anthony Collins, who was at Simpson’s house when the package arrived, was not involved.

Said Lewis: “I’ve been appraised of the situation for a few days now and unfortunately Anthony’s name got put into it for no reason. It was at Jerome’s house and it’s an investigation that’s going on. He’s cooperating and doing what he can to help in the investigation.”

Collins was seen briefly in the locker room but did not have stop for any comments.

Teammates had few comments, but offensive tackle Andrew Whitworth, who is one of the team leaders, did say that they would continue to support Simpson and Collins.

“This is a football team. We talked about being all in together, we talk about supporting one another and this is another instance where we are going to do that,” Whitworth said. “This is a situation where we are not going to jump out here and judge people or do things or that kind of stuff, we are here to support our guys, help them through situations no matter what guy gets into a situation. This just happens to be one that is public and it will be no different, we are going to rally around our guys and support them through this.”


Said safety Chris Crocker: “You always support your teammates regardless of whatever we go through. There’s no distractions. We know to deal with situations that happen from time to time. We really don’t know much about the situation so there’s not much to comment on.”[/quote]

[texbengal]

You know, I might have misinterpreted Rome when he said he was "really hungry."

[Bababooey31]

[quote name='BengalsOwn' timestamp='1316706154' post='1034877']

I literally started watching Breaking Bad last night, watched the first four episodes of season one.

It was spectacular.
[/quote]
Best show ever!

[|Numbers|]

Jordan Palmer had a return address on the package...

[blueridge]

Jerome Simpson is a stupid fuck. The only way he gets out of this is if the woman who accepted the package was dealing out of his house without Simpson's knowledge. Sounds a bit too rich for me. It is interesting, though, that neither Simpson nor Collins were arrested. I don't know about you guys, but I am past sick of this bullshit kind of news dogging this team. And once again-a note to all Bengals players:get the fucking hell out of Northern Kentucky(the reason why there has never been established mafia in Cincinnati).

[mgbrown66]

Why does it always seem like we start the season with so much receiver depth only to find out we were totally wrong.

[mgbrown66]

By the time this gets to court the season will be over. And you know that every sports teams standard answer is 'lets let this play out in the courts before we make any judgements.'

The biggest question is does he have his head on straight to play football for the remainder of the year?

[blueridge]

[quote name='mgbrown66' timestamp='1316715615' post='1034952']
Why does it always seem like we start the season with so much receiver depth only to find out we were totally wrong.
[/quote]
Because you can't foresee specific injuries. Or a dumbass hick WR from Carolina with 8 lbs of pot in his house. They still have a lot of receiving talent if the TEs are considered. Coffman should be signed to the active roster. The other WRs simply have to step it up. Opportunity is a good thing for some players.

[|Lucid|]

I know everyone is enjoying freaking out over this, but I still think serious jail time is unlikely, and it probably won't happen until the off-season. It's nice to think that this kind of stuff is about justice but the reality is, especially today, often times it's about money.

Jerome isn't some street thug negatively affecting property values or the viability of a business district. He's an NFL player who in part helps bring revenue to the city. For the city/county it's a pretty easy question...

Taking his house and leveling a fine = + money
Putting him in jail = - money.

Unless the feds can make a good case against him for trafficking over state lines, he is likely to get a slap on the wrist prison sentence (1-2 months) and a serious fine.. If it can be shown that drugs were sold from the house they will auction that as well.

[Bengals1181]

[quote][b]CRESTVIEW HILLS[/b] – Authorities did not know they were about to converge on the residence of a Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver as they traced a package of drugs mailed from California to Northern Kentucky this week. When they rang the doorbell, they found Jerome Simpson inside, a federal official said Thursday.[size=4]
[b]“It is not like the package was stamped Jerome Simpson, Cincinnati Bengals,” said Michelle Gregory, spokeswoman for the California Department of Justice.[/b][/size]
[size=4]
• [b][url="http://cincinnati.com/blogs/bengals/2011/09/22/simpson-not-at-practice-today/"]Collins not involved, says Lewis; Simpson not at practice[/url][/b][/size]
[size=4]
Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport Police asked to search the condominium on Mansion Place, and Simpson consented, she said.[/size]
[size=4]
In addition to the package of 2.5 pounds of California marijuana, airport police also found six more pounds of pot and paraphernalia inside the home.[/size]
[size=4]
In addition to Simpson, Bengals teammate Anthony Collins was present when a woman, Aleen Smith, 27, accepted the package Tuesday. Gregory identified Smith as Simpson’s girlfriend but said she was not sure if the two lived together.

Authorities detained Simpson and Collins, but no one was arrested.

The investigation continues, with federal and state investigators sorting out who will prosecute the case and what charges will be filed - and against whom, Gregory said.

Since the drugs crossed multiple state lines, federal and felony charges are likely and there could be prison time, she said. Conspiracy charges also could come into play.

“These can be very serious charges,” Gregory said. “You are sending illegal drugs through the mail. Depending on the charges, I think at the very least there will be prison time.”

About 10 p.m. Wednesday, authorities made a “welfare check” on Simpson’s Mansion Place residence, according to the Kentucky State Police’s Dry Ridge post. Further details on the incident were not released early Thursday. The case will be addressed later Thursday by the Kenton County Prosecutor’s Office, police said.

Crestview Hills/Lakeside Park Police Capt. Chris Schutte said his agency had never been called to the Mansion Place home prior to the incident Tuesday. Officers from the department assisted Airport Police when the package was delivered, he said.

Airport Police participated in the “controlled delivery” after they learned about the package from Calfornia authorities, Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International spokeswoman Barb Schemp said. She would not say anything else about the case, citing an ongoing investigation.

The drug case began just like any other for California officials, who routinely track suspected marijuana packages, Gregory said.

The path began on Sept. 19, when a narcotics squad that detects and tracks suspected marijuana shipments flagged a package that originated at a Eureka, Calif., shipping center.

California officials alerted Kentucky law enforcement agencies about the package, who traced it until it was delivered.

Bengals spokesman Jack Brennan has said the team was aware of the reports but did not offer any other comments.

Neither player is from California. Both Collins, from Texas, and Simpson, from North Carolina, are in their fourth years with the Bengals. Simpson was drafted in the second round in 2008 and has emerged as one of the team’s starting wide receivers. He had a career-high 136 yards on four receptions in last Sunday’s loss at Denver.

Collins, a fourth-round pick, did not play in the Denver game. Listed as a backup left tackle, he has started 16 games during his career.

Under NFL rules, both Collins and Simpson could be subject to discipline under the league’s substance abuse and personal conduct policies. Drug testing was suspended during the league’s lockout but restarted when it ended in late July.

NFL spokesman Greg Aiello confirmed that violations of law when drugs are concerned would make both players subject to discipline under both policies.

Calls to Collins’ and Simpson’s agents were not returned.
However, both Simpson and Collins did participate in Wednesday’s practice in preparation for Sunday’s game against San Francisco.[/quote]


[url="http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20110922/NEWS010703/309230004"]http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20110922/NEWS010703/309230004[/url][/size]

[mongo]

In a perfect world for Simpson, he bought the condo for the girlfriend, he lives somewhere else, and she accepts full blame. I think that's the best to hope for at the moment.

[bengals8580]

At least we wont waste money giving him a new contract after this season

[Bengals1181]

[quote name='mongo' timestamp='1316717780' post='1034963']
In a perfect world for Simpson, he bought the condo for the girlfriend, he lives somewhere else, and she accepts full blame. I think that's the best to hope for at the moment.
[/quote]


x2 and considering he didn't sign for the package (even though he was there), nor was it even addressed to him, I think that scenario is certainly plausible, and would explain why he hasn't been arrested to this point.

[blueridge]

Andy Dalton looked stoned to me at his most recent presser. That hat pulled low over his eyes. His red face. Spicoli-esque. Wasn't Nate Newton from Texas,too?

[JC]

[quote name='Bengals1181' timestamp='1316718359' post='1034965']


x2 and considering he didn't sign for the package (even though he was there), nor was it even addressed to him, I think that scenario is certainly plausible, and would explain why he hasn't been arrested to this point.
[/quote]
I dunno. Marv referred to it as his house and I have a hard time believing he has no idea his girlfriend is running a ganja distribution center out of his own home. Maybe it could have been one of his boys, but still, he's letting them run it in his house. He'd still probably get into some trouble.

Either way, he cost himself a lot of money by being a knucklehead.