The Michigan men's basketball program withdrew a scholarship offer from recruit Dionte Harvey, after learning that Harvey pled guilty to criminal charges.
On March 24, Harvey admitted to committing second-degree rape, The Detroit News reported on May 1.
Harvey, who averaged 24 points per game for Mott Community College in Flint this season, signed a letter of intent on April 28 to play for the Michigan basketball team. The University, however, had not received the letter as of the morning of April 30, according to the Detroit Free Press.
In a statement released April 30, Michigan coach Steve Fisher denied that he or his staff were previously informed of the rape charges.
"I have today been made aware of information previously withheld from me regarding Dionte Harvey," Fisher said. "On the basis of this information, we have discontinued our interest in having Mr. Harvey become a member of this basketball program."
According to the News, Fisher was first notified of the charges by one of its reporters on April 30. Subsequently, Fisher released the statement.
Associate Athletic Director Keith Molin said neither he nor Fisher would comment further beyond the statement.
Harvey, who graduated from Flint Northern in 1995 after leading his team to the Class A basketball state title, was originally charged with third-degree criminal sexual conduct involving a 16-year-old girl in 1995, the News reported.
The original charge carried a mandatory prison sentence of up to 15 years, but the lesser second-degree charge to which Harvey pled guilty would have allowed probation.
By pleading down, Harvey admitted only to injurious sexual contact without penetration, the News reported.
However, new evidence discovered by the News in police documents it procured under the Michigan Freedom of Information Act may change Harvey's plea bargain.
A lab report that was never examined by prosecutors, stating that semen was found on the victim and Harvey's clothing, will be presented to the court on May 28 at Harvey's sentencing, according to the News.
The University's lack of knowledge about the charge could be cause for concern among the coaching staff and NCAA investigators, considering that institutional control is one focus in a current NCAA probe of the basketball team.
The Detroit News claimed Mott basketball coach Steve Schmidt purposefully withheld the information from University officials in an effort to save Harvey's basketball career.
The newspaper also stated that Schmidt met with Genesee County Prosecutor Arthur Busch to win some leniency for Harvey.
However, Schmidt, in a conversation with The Michigan Daily, said that many of his comments had been misconstrued or taken out of context, and refused to comment further on the legal aspects of Harvey's case.
"He took everything out of context, and put it the way he wanted to," Schmidt said of an unnamed reporter. "I can't win. This guy was real sneaky and manipulative the other day. He's basically going to write what he wanted to write anyway."
Schmidt did say that, despite Harvey's guilty plea, he continues to believe in Harvey's integrity.
"I worked with the kid on a daily basis for about a year," Schmidt said. "From my experiences with him, I have the utmost respect for him and his character, and how he represented this program."
Under his lawyer's advisement, Harvey is not making any comments, Schmidt said.
This incident comes on the heels of recent allegations against the basketball team from two unidentified sources who spoke to the Detroit News and the Detroit Free Press.
The sources charged that team members violated NCAA regulations by accepting monetary gifts from Detroit-area booster Ed Martin.
Other charges have surfaced surrounding possible violations with regard to the distribution of complimentary tickets. University ticket records show that Martin was often seated near recruits at games.
An unsigned note on the ticket records for a game in 1994 states the then-recruit Willie Mitchell was to be seated between Martin and Detroit Mayor Dennis Archer's son, which may be a violation because at the time both Martin and Archer were considered part of the University's athletic program.
As a result of the allegations, the University has hired a law firm that specializes in NCAA infractions and compliance to investigate the claims.
- Daily News Editor Heather Kamins contributed to this report.